Xi to meet Putin in first overseas trip since COVID
STORY: For the first time in more than two years, China's President Xi Jinping is planning to travel overseas.
Xi is expected to go to Central Asia this week where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.
It will be the first time he has left China since the start of the global health crisis - and shows just how confident he is about his grip on power.
It also underlines just how perilous the global situation has become.
Xi's trip to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan comes against the backdrop of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
There appears to be no sign that Xi is ready to drop his support for Putin in Russia's most serious confrontation with the West since the height of the Cold War.
Also playing on people's minds is the crisis over Taiwan and a stuttering global economy.
China has yet to confirm Xi’s travel plans.
But last week, during a meeting with China's top legislator, Putin said he planned to hold talks with Xi in Uzbekistan.
The two leaders are expected to attend a summit there of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization which kicks off on Thursday.
The meeting will give Xi an opportunity to underscore his clout while Putin can demonstrate Russia's tilt towards Asia.
The West, no doubt, will be watching on closely.
