Sept. 18 (UPI) — Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi arrived in Russia Monday for a four-day visit that will include talks on boosting security and strategic coordination as the countries seek to deepen their alliance amid the Ukraine war.
The trip marked Wang’s second visit to Moscow since February, and came in the shadow of a visit to the Russian capital last week by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who met in private with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid growing concerns over a possible military pact between the budding allies.
Wang, who traveled with the head of the Communist Party’s foreign affairs office, was scheduled to be in Moscow through Thursday to attend multiple high-level meetings, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.
It was unclear if Wang would meet with Putin during the visit.
To kick off the weeklong slate, China’s top diplomat planned to sit down first with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to discuss Ukraine, as well as stability and security goals throughout the Far East.
The meeting will delve into “a broad range of aspects of bilateral cooperation, including high- and summit-level contacts,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.
“The strengthening of cooperation on the world stage with emphasis on the joint work at the U.N., Brics, the SCO, the G20, Apec and other forums will be highlighted,” Zakharova said.
During other talks in the coming days, Wang would also raise a number of “important topics related to the strategic security interests of the two countries.”
Beijing and Moscow “have maintained close communication on major strategic and global issues of common interest,” the Chinese ministry said.
Notably, Wang flew to Russia hours after wrapping up “open, substantive and constructive strategic negotiations” with U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in Malta, where the pair discussed Ukraine and continuing tensions over Taiwan.
Wang’s trip, however, was considered “routine activity” in China as senior diplomats of the two countries have met nearly every year since the early 2000s in an effort to strengthen bilateral security.
China is suspected of providing technology to Russia to support the war in Ukraine, but so far Beijing has not furnished Moscow with any weapons.
Wang made his latest trip at the urging of Russia’s Security Council chief Nikolai Patrushev, with the visit intended to woo Putin to travel to Beijing next month for the Belt and Road summit, in what would be his first visit to China since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Putin has limited his travels after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest earlier this year for alleged war crimes in Ukraine.
