In an article published at the beginning of his Moscow trip, Xi said the two countries adhered to the concept of "eternal friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation"

Xi and Putin "will discuss topical issues of further development of comprehensive partnership relations," the Kremlin said

Many Russian banks have been blocked from the SWIFT network due to Western sanctions over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine

The firm also plans to help establish a Russian production site for the drones which are similar to Iran's Shaheed-136 and can carry a 35-50kg warhead

India is also pushing to avoid using the term "war" to describe Russia's invasion of Ukraine in official communique, G20 officials said

Chinese-Russian relations "will withstand any test in a changing international situation," China's top diplomat Wang Yi told one of President Vladimir Putin's closest allies

Experts say the meeting might not change the downward trajectory in the US-China relationship, considering 'there is almost no trust between the two sides'

Russia has been diverting oil exports from Europe to Asia as the US and its allies try to choke off its energy revenues to limit its ability to fund the Ukraine war

India sold crude products worth $588 million to the US in November after snapping up sanctioned Russian oil at deep discounts

IMF Asia-Pacific director Krishna Srinivasan said inflationary pressures are rising due to a global surge in food and fuel costs caused by the war in Ukraine

Reliance emerged as one of the key buyers of discounted Russian crude after some Western buyers shunned it following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in late February

China's grain stocks at the end of the 2021/22 season were estimated by the International Grains Council to be 323.4 million tonnes, more than half the global total of 607.4 million