Jiang Zemin leaves for Moscow tomorrow on a state visit largely designed to boost the President's profile as an international statesman and flaunt the 'strategic partnership' between the two former enemies.
Almost a year ago, Russian President Boris Yeltsin visited China.
In Shanghai, the two leaders were joined by the presidents of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, where they signed a pact on border troops and boundaries.
The centrepiece of Mr Jiang's visit will be a similar ceremony, with the same leaders signing an apparently identical agreement. It is designed to strengthen Mr Jiang's image as he prepares for the 15th Communist Party congress and a major reshuffle of the party hierarchy.
It will be his second state visit to Moscow, a city where he once trained at the Stalin car works.
Mr Yeltsin is anxious to show Russia is successfully focusing on opportunities to join in East Asian growth.
Both countries are seeking a counterweight to their dependence on the United States, but so far the strategic alliance has been largely in China's favour.