Putin’s Lavish Welcome: Is China Picking Sides?

Just days after President Trump departed Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping rolled out the full red carpet for Vladimir Putin — a striking diplomatic signal that China is playing all sides of the global chessboard.

Story Highlights

Xi Jinping hosted Putin at a formal state welcome ceremony on the morning of May 20 at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Putin’s two-day state visit came shortly after President Trump’s own summit with Xi, raising pointed questions about China’s true allegiances.
The ceremony featured full military honors, including a 21-gun salute and the playing of both national anthems.
Xi and Putin held small-group bilateral talks following the welcome ceremony, signaling a deepening strategic partnership.

Full State Honors for Putin in Beijing

Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin with a formal state ceremony at the East Gate Square of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the morning of May 20. ^[1] The reception included a red carpet, the playing of both nations’ national anthems, and a 21-gun salute — the full protocol treatment reserved for the closest of allies. Putin arrived in Beijing on May 19 for a two-day state visit, and the elaborate welcome left little ambiguity about how Beijing views its relationship with Moscow.

Following the outdoor welcome ceremony, the two leaders moved to small-group bilateral talks inside the Great Hall of the People. ^[6] State broadcaster China Global Television Network (CGTN) reported live on the proceedings, framing the summit as a continuation of the deepening China-Russia strategic partnership. The meeting covered bilateral agenda items, though official readouts with full details had not been published at the time of this report.

The Timing Is No Accident

Putin’s arrival came just days after President Trump wrapped up his own summit with Xi Jinping in Beijing — a sequence that drew immediate attention from analysts and media worldwide. ^[3] CBS News noted that Putin’s visit was being closely watched precisely because of its proximity to the Trump-Xi meeting, with observers trying to read how China intends to balance its relationships with both Washington and Moscow. ^[3] Beijing appears determined to keep both doors open, extracting maximum leverage from each relationship.

For American conservatives, the optics are hard to ignore. Xi hosted Trump, pocketed whatever diplomatic wins he could, and then within days gave Putin the full red-carpet treatment — complete with military honors that signal deep mutual respect. ^[4] China is not choosing sides; it is playing the field, and that strategy has real consequences for U.S. interests, from trade negotiations to the ongoing war in Ukraine, where China’s economic lifeline to Russia remains a critical factor.

What China’s Balancing Act Means for America

The back-to-back summits expose a core challenge for the Trump administration’s China strategy. Engaging Xi economically and diplomatically is a legitimate goal, but Beijing’s willingness to immediately turn around and host Putin with maximum ceremony suggests China views its relationship with Russia as equally — if not more — important than any accommodation it might offer Washington. ^[7] The ceremonial depth of the Putin welcome, including the 21-gun salute and bilateral talks, was not the reception of a secondary partner.

On the morning of May 20, Chinese President Xi Jinping held a welcoming ceremony for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is on a state visit to China, at the square outside the East Gate of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. https://t.co/EZheVNXL3x

— dididada (@dididad81352813) May 20, 2026

State visits of this magnitude are carefully choreographed to send messages beyond their formal agendas. By hosting Putin with full military honors just days after Trump’s departure, Xi is signaling to the world — and to Washington — that China will not subordinate its strategic partnership with Russia to any deal with the United States. ^[3] For the Trump administration, that means any agreements reached during the Trump-Xi summit must be evaluated against the backdrop of Beijing’s continued, enthusiastic embrace of Moscow. Trust, but verify has never been more relevant.