MOSCOW, May 20. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin's two-day official visit to China has come to an end: all public and protocol events, including an informal tea party with Chinese President Xi Jinping, have been completed. As Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov previously noted, "taking a stroll and having a cup of tea" is the most important thing one can and should do in China, since it is in this environment that key decisions are made. However, the public part of the visit was also full of events: the Russian president held talks with his Chinese counterpart, both in the company of smaller and expanded delegations, opened the Russia-China Cross-Year of Education, spoke with Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China Li Qiang, and then met with a grown-up witness of his first state visit to China. He also visited a photo exhibition, organized in part by TASS.
"It was successful, intense, and fruitful work," the Russian president himself assessed the visit. TASS has compiled the key moments of Vladimir Putin's visit.
"The Spirit of Beijing" and Exemplary Borderless Relations
Putin's spring visit is timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation between China and Russia. This quarter-century has shown that there are truly no problems in relations between Moscow and Beijing: they are "an example of truly comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction," the Russian leader emphasized. It is therefore not surprising that the parties jointly decided to extend the treaty. Another sign of friendship was the prolongation of the visa-free regime between Russia and China. A year ago, Beijing proposed a visa-free regime until mid-September 2026, and Moscow supported it. Today, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced an extension until the end of 2027. "The visa-free regime has proven very positive," Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with TASS, announcing Moscow's decision to reciprocate.
