President Xi Jinping hailed China and Russia's "unyielding" ties in talks with Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, as the pair met to underscore their alliance days after Donald Trump's visit to the Asian superpower economy.
After the US president was received with pomp last week but left without major breakthroughs including on help with reopening the Strait of Hormuz, Putin's visit will be scrutinised for tangible takeaways.
Putin is however weakened by years of Russia's war on Ukraine, as sanctions by Western powers put the squeeze on energy revenues and increased Moscow's dependance on China, the main buyer of Russian oil.
The US war on Iran has however hampered crude and gas flows, giving an opportunity to Putin to offer Russian energy sources as an alternative.
Analysts believe that Putin could use the visit to push for progress on the major "Power of Siberia 2" natural gas pipeline from Russia to China through Mongolia -- a land alternative to crude imported by sea from the Middle East.
