Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to visit China in October, Kremlin says
- The announcement comes soon after the leader decided to skip a summit in South Africa because of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against him
- China is not a signatory to the treaty that established the court, so Putin can travel to there more easily
Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to visit China in October, a top Kremlin official announced on Tuesday.
Russian news agencies quoted Putin’s foreign policy adviser, Yuri Ushakov, as saying the trip will be timed to coincide with a Belt and Road Initiative forum in China. Beijing’s belt and road plan involves infrastructure projects to connect Asia with European and African countries.
Ushakov said Putin also plans to travel to Turkey at some point to fulfil a promise to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, although the dates for that visit have not been decided yet.
In addition, the Kremlin received an invitation for Putin to participate in a Group of 20 summit in India in September, he said. The Russian leader’s in-person attendance has not been ruled out, although the format of Putin’s participation is still “unclear”, Ushakov said.
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The announcement of Putin’s travel plans came days after South African officials said he had agreed to skip an economic summit in their country next month because of an arrest warrant the International Criminal Court issued against him. The ICC has accused Putin of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.