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Putin to visit China on May 16-17

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Putin and Xi to discuss Ukraine, energy and trade

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Putin takes his new defence minister to China

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Rosneft, Sberbank, VTB chiefs in delegation

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First foreign trip for Putin of new term

(Recasts with details of discussion and who is joining the

trip)

By Guy Faulconbridge

MOSCOW, May 14 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir

Putin will visit China on May 16-17 for discussions with Xi

Jinping about the conflict in Ukraine as well as deepening

energy and trade cooperation, the Kremlin chief's first foreign

trip of his new six-year term.

China and Russia declared a "no limits" partnership in

February 2022 when Putin visited Beijing just days before he

sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine, triggering the

deadliest land war in Europe since World War Two.

The Kremlin said Putin will pay a state visit at the

invitation of Xi and that they will discuss China's Belt and

Road Initiative, the situation in the Middle East and Asia as

well as Ukraine.

Putin's newly appointed defence minister, Andrei Belousov,

as well as Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Security Council

Secretary Sergei Shoigu and foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov

will also attend an informal meeting between Putin and Xi on May

16.

"The leaders will have a one-on-one conversation, they will

walk through the park next to the palace, drink tea, obviously,

and then informal talks will take place during an informal

dinner with the participation of some members of the delegations

from both sides," Ushakov told Russian news agencies.

He praised China for its "balanced" position on Ukraine.

Putin, 71, and Xi, 70, will take part in a gala evening

celebrating 75 years since the Soviet Union recognised the

People's Republic of China, which was declared by Mao Zedong in

1949.

Reuters reported exclusively in March that Putin would

travel to China in May.

The United States casts China as its biggest competitor and

Russia as its biggest nation-state threat while U.S. President

Joe Biden argues that this century will be defined by an

existential contest between democracies and autocracies.

Putin and Xi share a broad world view, which sees the West

as decadent and in decline just as China challenges U.S.

supremacy in everything from quantum computing and synthetic

biology to espionage and hard military power.

During the visit, Putin will meet Chinese Premier Li Qiang

to discuss trade and economic cooperation. Putin will also visit

Harbin in northeastern China, a city with strong ties to Russia.

Putin pivoted strongly to China after the United States and

its allies tried to isolate Russia as punishment for the war in

Ukraine.

China-Russian trade hit a record of $240.1 billion in 2023,

up 26.3% from a year earlier, Chinese customs data shows.

Putin will bring a large trade delegation with him,

including Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and Central Bank

Governor Elvira Nabiullina.

Others in the delegation include Sberbank CEO

German Gref, businessman Oleg Deripaska, VTB chief

Andrei Kostin, Rosneft chief Igor Sechin and Novatek

boss Leonid Mikhelson, Ushakov said.

China has strengthened its trade and military ties with

Russia as the United States and its allies imposed sanctions

against both countries. Russia has become China's top crude

supplier, with its oil shipments to China jumping more than 24%

in 2023 despite Western sanctions.

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Mark Trevelyan,

Christina Fincher and Ros Russell)