He has even thought about the gift for the Chinese leader. Putin personally announced this plan and will visit China next month. Chernyshevsky | Lavrov | Xi Jinping

According to a report quoted by the Russian Satellite News Agency, Russian President Putin stated on the 25th that he plans to visit China in May. If the trip takes place, China may become the first country Putin visits after starting his new term.

On the 25th, Putin mentioned plans to visit China at the annual conference of the Russian Federation of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, but did not specify the specific date of the visit.

Russian public opinion said that considering the month of May, this visit may be Putin's first overseas visit after starting his new term.

In the Russian general election held in March, Putin won re-election with a high vote and is expected to be sworn in on May 7 for his fifth term.

Regarding Putin's expected first visit to China in his new term, there have been reports and relevant signs before.

On March 19, while attending a meeting with various parties in parliament, Putin said that he would seriously consider the proposal to make China the first foreign country to visit in the new term.

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov visited China from the 8th to 9th of this month, and this trip was also speculated to be a precursor to Putin's visit to China.

Earlier this month, Russian Presidential Press Secretary Peskov confirmed Putin’s plan to visit China, but did not disclose the specific date.

Peskov said at the time that given the high level of friendly relations between Russia and China, both sides understood that top-level contact was necessary and reasonable.

On the 25th, when asked about relevant issues, Peskov said that the Kremlin will release news about President Putin’s visit to China in a timely manner. He also said that Russia will announce everything together with its Chinese partners.

The outside world believes that Putin’s planned visit to China is, as Russia has said, comprehensively consolidating and improving relations with China as a priority of its foreign policy. It hopes to continue the friendly relations between Russia and China and comprehensively strengthen cooperation with China.

Putin not only personally announced his plans to visit China, but also revealed what gifts he would give to Chinese leaders.

At the conference that day, a participant suggested that Putin bring a copy of the Russian writer Chernyshevsky's novel "What to Do?" with the library's admission seal on June 15, 1953, when he visits China. 》presented to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

According to this participant, the book was published in 1953 and was delivered to the library on June 15 of the same year, which happened to be President Xi Jinping’s birthday. At the same time, Chernyshevsky and his masterpiece What to Do? ” is also one of the Chinese leader’s favorite writers and works.

President Xi Jinping has mentioned this 19th-century Russian writer and his works several times.

During his visit to Russia in March 2013, Xi Jinping met with Russian sinologists, students studying Chinese and media representatives and said: "When I was young, I read Chernyshevsky's "What to Do?" and it gave me a lot of inspiration at the time. Influence."

When delivering a speech at the Moscow Institute of International Relations, Xi Jinping also quoted Chernyshevsky's famous saying: "The road of history is not the sidewalk on Nevsky Prospekt. It advances entirely in the fields, sometimes through dust, sometimes through Mud, sometimes across swamps, sometimes through jungle.”

Regarding the proposal of donating books, Putin agreed and said, "I will definitely bring this book to give to our friends." Putin also praised Xi Jinping as a strong leader.

A video later released by a Russian journalist showed the Russian presidential concierge taking the copy of "What to Do?" from the attendee's hands. 》.

Heads-of-state diplomacy is the fundamental guarantee for the stability and long-term development of China-Russia relations. Since 2013, the heads of state of China and Russia have met more than 40 times.

The most recent round of mutual visits between the two sides was last year. In March 2023, President Xi Jinping visited Russia. This is Xi Jinping's first state visit after being re-elected as President of the country. In October of the same year, Putin came to China to attend the third "Belt and Road" International Cooperation Summit Forum.

Since the beginning of this year, China and Russia have had close high-level interactions: In January, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu went to Russia to hold consultations between China and Russia’s diplomatic departments; in February, the two heads of state had a phone call as the Spring Festival was approaching; at the end of February, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong visited Russia and held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov held talks; in March, Xi Jinping sent a message to congratulate Putin on his re-election as Russian president; in April, China and Russia held consultations on United Nations and Security Council affairs; in the same month, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov visited China.

If Putin visits China next month, high-level exchanges between China and Russia will reach a new climax.

Looking at the information released by both sides, Sino-Russian relations, multilateral collaboration, regional and global hot spots, and strategic issues of common concern are expected to be the focus of this visit.

In terms of Sino-Russian relations, this year China and Russia will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations and kick off the two-year Sino-Russian Cultural Year. Both parties will take this opportunity to promote all-round cooperation and release more potential.

Russian political analyst Alexey Makarkin said that China and Russia are committed to bilateral cooperation, and the import and export volumes of both countries are growing. China is now Russia's main partner and a cooperative partner within the BRICS framework.

At the level of multilateral cooperation, Russia serves as the chairman of the BRICS this year and will host the BRICS summit in October. In the second half of the year, China will take over the rotating chairmanship of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

It is expected that the two sides will strengthen communication and collaboration within multilateral frameworks such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and support Kazakhstan in hosting this year's SCO summit.

Hotspots such as the Ukraine crisis and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict are also considered important issues.

Makarkin predicted that the two sides are likely to discuss China's proposals on the Ukraine issue. The Western proposal was rejected by Russia, but China's initiative deserves more attention.

It is worth noting that the West is also paying close attention to Putin's planned trip to China.

Some Western media have falsely suggested that China and Russia are working "back-to-back" to counter the United States and the West, and have expressed concerns about the strengthening of cooperation between China and Russia. They believe that China-Russia cooperation is intended to expand global influence and challenge the international order dominated by the United States.

Regarding the West's wanton misinterpretation through the "filter" of the Cold War, China and Russia have a clear positioning and clear principles for their relations, demonstrating a new paradigm of major power relations that is completely different from the Cold War period.

During the Russian Foreign Minister’s visit to China not long ago, Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister, mentioned the “Five Alwayss” in talking about Sino-Russian relations, one of which is to always adhere to the principle of “non-alignment, non-confrontation, and non-targeting of third parties” .

Lavrov also pointed out that Russia-China relations are based on mutual respect, equal cooperation and trustworthy dialogue, surpassing the alliance during the Cold War and showing strong resilience.

Both sides also emphasized that they oppose hegemonism and power politics and effectively promote an equal and orderly world multipolarization and democratization of international relations.