President Xi Jinping will pay a state visit to Russia at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin; US President Donald Trump will kick off Europe trip; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit Brussels; and Kazakhstan will hold early presidential elections.
These are the international events under the spotlight for the week starting June 3.
President Xi to visit Russia
President Xi Jinping holds talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing, April 26, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]
President Xi Jinping will kick off a three-day state visit to Russia on Wednesday at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and attend the 23rd St. Petersburg International Economic Forum to be held between June 6 and June 8.
Beijing and Moscow will sign around 30 cooperation documents during Xi's visit, and the two presidents will witness the signing of an array of agreements on business deals in areas such as trade, investment and energy.
During Xi's visit, the two leaders will attend a series of events commemorating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral ties, which will include the official opening ceremony of a panda facility at Moscow Zoo. A pair of giant pandas were delivered to Moscow Zoo in April for research cooperation.
Trump to kick off Europe trip
Britain's Queen Elizabeth (center) stands with US President Donald Trump and his wife, Melania, in the Grand Corridor during their visit to Windsor Castle in Britain, July 13, 2018. [Photo/Agencies]
US President Donald Trump will visit Europe next week.
Trump is expected to pay a state visit to Britain on June 3-5, and then travel to France to observe the D-Day anniversary in Normandy on June 6 and meet French President Emmanuel Macron.
The president and first lady Melania Trump have also accepted the invitation of Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar to visit Ireland, and Trump will hold talks with Varadkar on June 5.
On June 6, 1944, allied troops launched a surprise military operation, known as the D-Day Normandy Landings, in which more than 2 million soldiers landed in Normandy, northern France.
The massive operation began to regain German-occupied western Europe and contributed to the victory of the allied forces in World War II.
Ukrainian president to visit Brussels
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky takes oath during his presidential oath-taking ceremony at the Ukrainian Parliament in Kiev, Ukraine, May 20, 2019. [Photo/VCG]
New Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is visiting Brussels on June 4-5. The visit is the new president's first official travel abroad.
Zelensky is scheduled to meet with European Union leaders, namely President of the European Council Donald Tusk and President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Jundker.
On Zelensky's agenda are also a meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and a joint press conference following the meeting.
Kazakhstan to hold early presidential elections
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev attends a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, May 29, 2019. [Photo/Agencies]
Kazakhstan will hold early presidential elections on June 9.
"In accordance with the Constitution, I made a decision to call for the extraordinary presidential elections of the Republic of Kazakhstan on June 9, 2019. On this matter I have consulted with the Leader of the Nation Nursultan Nazarbayev," said Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in a televised address to the nation in April.
The presidential elections were originally scheduled for 2020.
The president instructed the Central Election Commission to organize the elections and ordered the government to take necessary measures for organizational, logistical and financial support of the elections.
Tokayev was sworn in as Kazakhstan president on March 20 following the sudden resignation of Nazarbayev who had served as the country's president for nearly three decades.
