KABUL (Pajhwok): Chinese President Xi Jinping and visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Beijing on Wednesday, according to media reports.
Xi welcomed Putin to the Chinese capital, where the two leaders shook hands outside the Great Hall of the People before beginning official talks, Al Jazeera reported, citing footage released by Russian media.
Before entering the hall, Xi and Putin walked along a red carpet laid out in honor of the Russian leader and stood together as a military band played the national anthems of both countries.
At the start of the meeting, Putin praised the “strong and positive” momentum in Russia-China cooperation, according to Russian media.
“Even amid unfavorable external factors, our cooperation and economic partnership are demonstrating strong, positive momentum,” Putin told Xi.
Putin is accompanied by a large delegation of Russian business executives and government officials. The Kremlin said the two leaders are expected to sign around 40 agreements covering sectors including the economy, tourism and education.
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