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AS Russian President Vladimir Putin prepares for his heavily choreographed May 9 “Victory Day” military parade, he’s been clear who’s at the top of his guest list: Xi Jinping.
The Chinese leader arrived in Moscow on Wednesday for a four-day state visit, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported. Xi will deepen “mutual trust” with Putin, according to Beijing, and attend activities commemorating 80 years since the Allied forces’ World War II victory over Nazi Germany.
Xi’s attendance marks a strong showing of unity between the two autocrats and their nations at a moment when US President Donald Trump’s “America First” diplomacy has shaken global alliances and reshaped relations between Washington and both powers. In remarks last month, Putin described Xi as his “main guest.”
In a written statement marking his arrival in Moscow, Xi hailed China and Russia as “good neighbors that cannot be moved apart, true friends who share weal and woe, and reliable partners who help each other succeed.”
The two countries will “work together to defend the hard-won outcomes of World War II,” resolutely oppose “hegemonism and power politics” and promote the establishment of “a more just and reasonable global governance system,” Xi said in the statement.
Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Vietnam’s President To Lam and Belarussian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko are among other leaders expected to attend the celebrations. Contingents from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army honor guard will also join the parade, which takes place in the shadow of Putin’s assault on Ukraine.
To commemorate the event, Putin proposed a three-day ceasefire with Kyiv – a decision some analysts say was motivated by a desire to show off Russia’s military might uninterrupted in front of foreign dignitaries. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the proposal, calling it a “theatrical performance” and reiterated his support for an earlier US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire.
Earlier this month, Zelenskiy warned dignitaries traveling to the event that Kyiv “cannot be responsible for what happens on the territory of the Russian Federation,” amid the ongoing conflict – which the Kremlin later said amounted to a threat.
Ukraine has launched multiple drone attacks on Moscow over the course of the war, including in recent days – prompting temporary closures of airports in the capital for several hours. Its biggest attack on the Russian capital in March killed three people.
Ukraine says its attacks are aimed at destroying infrastructure key to Moscow’s war efforts and are in response to Russia’s continued assault on Ukrainian territory, including residential areas and energy infrastructure.
Russia’s May 9 “Victory Day” is one of the country’s largest celebrations and marks Nazi Germany’s 1945 surrender to the Soviet Union, a day which has become increasingly important under Putin, who has falsely claimed his war in Ukraine is a “denazification.” Previous years have seen a diminished supply of military hardware as Russian tanks are instead mobilized on that war’s front lines.
Shifting landscape
The visit is Xi’s third time in Russia since Putin launched his war more than three years ago, but much has changed since his last visit just over six months ago.
China and the US are now locked in an escalated trade war that threatens major impact to both economies, and Beijing finds itself in need of strengthening its friendships – and trade partnerships – with other nations, including Russia. Top officials from the US and China are set to meet in Switzerland later this week, in what could begin a lengthy process of trade talks to end frictions.
Moscow, meanwhile, has found a much more sympathetic America under Trump compared with his predecessor, but is now warily eying recently warming ties between Washington and Kyiv as the US president appears to lose patience with Putin in his push for an end to the conflict.
“Now … there are more incentives between China and Russia to present a solid image of their alignment,” said Yun Sun, director of the China program at the Washington-based Stimson Center think tank. - May 8, 2025