BEIJING, October 18. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the second day of his visit to Beijing.
The meeting will be held on the sidelines of the third One Belt - One Road international forum. The initiative, put forward by the Chinese president, was designed to create economic connections between China and countries of Europe, Central Asia and Africa. It is also aimed at intensifying international trade and investment projects.
In the morning, the Russian president will join other leaders at the opening ceremony. As the event’s main guest, he is expected to deliver a speech immediately after the host nation’s leader. After that, he will participate the Russian-Chinese negotiations. As the Kremlin announced earlier, the talks will be "full-scale," even though Xi Jinping "will be immensely busy during the international forum."
Intense agenda
Moscow announced that Putin and Xi will address key bilateral and global matters, including the process of shaping a multipolar world order, in a traditionally frank and friendly conversation.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the two leaders would also synchronize their watches on international issues and regional conflicts, including Ukraine. "As a rule, the Russian president gives his assessment of the latest developments in the special military operation," he went on, adding that "naturally, the Chinese leader also shares" his opinion on the situation.
Russia also expects the latest round of Israeli-Palestinian tensions to be discussed. Before departing for Beijing, Putin held a marathon of phone calls dedicated to Middle Eastern affairs to all parties involved in the situation directly or indirectly. "So the leaders will have things to share, particularly because the situation is developing quickly and tensions remain high," Peskov noted.
Bilateral matters will also be up for discussion. As the Kremlin said earlier, Moscow and Beijing have a very busy agenda that includes economic cooperation and joint projects," such as prospects of the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline project.
Meanwhile there are no plans of signing any documents in the wake of the meeting.
Format and schedule of negotiations
Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said that the talks will be held in two rounds: first, with the delegations and then one-on-one. "Despite the fact that the Chinese president will be very busy during the international forum - there will be a lot of guests, we will have full-scale talks, with negotiations involving delegations being held first," he noted.
Russia will send a representative delegation to Beijing, which will include Deputy Prime Ministers Alexander Novak and Dmitry Chernyshenko, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov, Minister of the Development of the Russian Far East Alexey Chekunov, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Director of the Federal Financial Monitoring Service Yury Chikhanchin, Direcor of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation Dmitry Shugayev, and RZD CEO Oleg Belozerov.
"A very big group will represent Russian businesses," Ushakov said, adding that among the delegation member will be Sberbank CEO Herman Gref, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) Kirill Dmitiriev, VTB CEO Andrey Kostin, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller, Novatek CEO Leonid Mikhelson, Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin, businessman Gennady Timchenko, and VEB.RF CEO Igor Shuvalov.
The presidential administration will be represented by Ushakov, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, and presidential aide Maxim Oreshkin, who will be present at the talks between the two countries’ delegations.
These talks will be followed by a one-on-one meeting to be held during a working breakfast. "It is not ruled out that the leaders will speak tete-a-tete outside this format," he said, adding that such meetings typically center around very sensitive matters.
The Kremlin aide recalled that the upcoming talks will constitute the second personal meeting between Putin and Xi this year. The Chinese president paid a state visit to Russia in March. Prior to this, the Russian leader visited China in February 2022 to attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games.
Putin and Xi may hold other bilateral contacts. The Kremlin has not yet disclosed their details, adding that the diplomatic work to organize them continues.
Wrapping up his visit, the Russian president will traditionally meet with the group of Russian journalists, accompanying him on the visit. He will sum up the results of his work in Beijing and answer to their questions.