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Russian President Vladimir Putin is in Beijing for the start of a two-day state visit underlining close alignment with Chinese leader Xi Jinping as Russian troops advance in Ukraine.
The visit — Putin’s symbolic first overseas foray since entering a new term as Russia’s president last week – is the latest sign of deepening relations as the two bind their countries closer in the face of heavy frictions with the West.
This is the fourth in-person meeting between Xi and Putin since Russia’s invasion and Putin’s second visit to Beijing in that time.
Russian troops have been pushing into northeastern Ukraine since their surprise assault on May 10 in the border region of Kharkiv. Their advances in the region are Moscow’s most significant since Ukrainian forces recaptured Kharkiv in 2022.
