Chinese president Xi Jinping is expected to travel to North Korea as early as next week to meet leader Kim Jong-un, following a tightly sequenced round of high-profile summits in Beijing that included visits by US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Less than a week after Xi Jinping rolled out the red carpet for US President Donald Trump, the Chinese leader is hosting another guest of honor – and this time it’s a close ally.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is set to host his "old friend" Vladimir Putin less than a week after Donald Trump's high-profile visit, as Beijing seeks to project itself as a stable…