Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin were filmed bidding warm farewells to one another after their two-day meeting in the Kremlin.
“Right now there are changes — the likes of which we haven’t seen for 100 years — and we are the ones driving these changes together,” Xi said, to which Putin replied: “I agree.”
The leaders shook hands and Xi said: “Take care please, dear friend.”
“Have a safe trip,” Putin responded.
Xi was hosted over a seven-course private dinner before both leaders were greeted by officials from their respective countries to sit down for talks.
The two leaders, who have long described themselves as firm friends, signed two agreements, including to affirm their partnership and to set out plans for economic cooperation.
Xi, who called his visit a “journey of peace,” called for “responsible dialogue” to resolve the Ukraine crisis while claiming to uphold “an objective and impartial position” on the country.
However, the U.S. and Kyiv have dismissed China’s peace plan, noting that a ceasefire could give Putin’s army more time to regroup.
Xi and Putin’s diplomatic meeting comes days after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin for war crimes charges allegedly committed in Ukraine.
