According to Moscow’s foreign ministry, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin has arrived in China for a visit during which he will meet with President Xi Jinping and sign a number of agreements on commerce and infrastructure.
According to the ministry, Mishustin arrived in Shanghai late on Monday. He was met at the airport by Zhang Hanhui, the senior representative of Beijing to Russia, and Igor Morgulov, the ambassador of Moscow to China.
According to the Kremlin, he will attend a Russian-Chinese Business Forum, tour a petrochemical research facility in Shanghai, and speak with “representatives of Russian business circles.”
In addition to Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who oversees energy problems, the event has invited other Russian businessmen who have been sanctioned, including those from the crucial fertiliser, steel, and mining industries, according to Bloomberg.
The largest energy consumer for Russia last year was China, whose gas exports had already plunged as a result of a wave of Western sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine.
According to Russian official agency TASS, Mishustin will next fly to Beijing where he will meet with Xi and Premier Li Qiang.
Since the invasion of Ukraine, China and Russia have stepped up their economic cooperation and political exchanges, solidifying their strategic alliance.
China claims to be a neutral participant in the conflict, yet it has refrained from criticizing Russia for the invasion.
Beijing published a document in February pushing for a “political settlement” to the crisis, which Western nations said may allow Russia to retain a significant portion of the area it has annexed in Ukraine.
President Vladimir Putin was asked to visit Beijing by Xi at a conference in Moscow in March.
According to analysts, China has the upper hand in ties with Russia, and its influence is expanding as Moscow’s international isolation increases.
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