Russian Foreign Minister: "Putin to Visit China in First Half of Year"... Positions Himself as Mediator in Middle East Conflict

Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit China during the first half of this year, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Sergey Lavrov, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, is moving to the meeting venue with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, China, on the 15th. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

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According to the Russian news agency TASS, Minister Lavrov held a press conference in Beijing, China, on the 15th and stated, "The final schedule is still being coordinated." Lavrov is visiting China for two days starting the previous day at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Regarding the relationship between Russia and China, he said, "It serves as a safety net in international affairs," and added, "The relationship between the two countries is becoming increasingly important to the global majority." He also praised the two countries, noting, "Russia and China can avoid being swayed by the United States, which is attempting to disrupt the global energy market under the pretext of the Middle East conflict."

On the Middle East conflict, he described it as "a knot of crisis that is extremely difficult to untangle," and pointed out, "Attempts to simply cut it will not achieve results." He further stated, "Russia, along with China, is capable of supplying energy to countries in need due to the Middle East crisis," and asserted, "European officials are requesting that the European Commission postpone plans to completely halt Russian energy supplies."

He also expressed hope that Russia could play a certain role in peace negotiations between the United States and Iran. "Russia is ready to contribute to resolving Iran's enriched uranium issue," he said, emphasizing, "Iran's right to enrich uranium is inalienable." In particular, he criticized the European Union, stating that it played "the most harmful role" by pretending to restore United Nations sanctions against Iran.

Minister Lavrov also addressed the Ukraine issue. Last August, the United States and Russia held a summit in Alaska for about three hours. Key agenda items included ceasefire conditions, territorial issues, and normalization of bilateral relations. Although the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and President Putin was symbolic as their first in six years, no concrete agreement was reached to end the war.

He said, "Russia welcomes negotiations with the United States on the Ukraine issue and is prepared to continue them," adding, "Russia is willing to continue implementing the agreements reached at the Alaska summit with the United States."

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