Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing on Wednesday, days after hosting US President Donald Trump in the Chinese capital.
Xi greeted Putin with military honours and a red carpet ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People, according to images broadcast by Chinese state media, which also showed children waving Chinese and Russian flags.
Putin arrived in Beijing on Tuesday evening for talks expected to focus on bilateral ties as well as international and regional issues.
According to Russian officials, the two leaders are also expected to hold informal talks over tea. Around 40 bilateral agreements are due to be signed during the visit.
Putin's trip comes shortly after Xi hosted Trump in Beijing last week. The Kremlin has said that the Russian president's visit had been planned earlier.
The visit marks the 25th anniversary of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighbourliness and Friendly Cooperation.
International issues expected to feature in the talks include the war in Iran and Russia's war against Ukraine.
Energy cooperation is also likely to be a major topic. Russia wants to expand energy supplies to China, including through the proposed Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline, which would transport Russian gas to China via Mongolia.
Chinese state media accompanied the visit with strongly supportive commentary. The state-backed Global Times said Xi and Putin would set the course for bilateral ties in a new phase and highlighted the countries' "permanent good-neighborly friendship" along their approximately 4,300-kilometre-long shared border.
