MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping have begun their talks in the Kremlin.

The Russian delegation includes Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, presidential aides Maxim Oreshkin and Yury Ushakov, Russian Ambassador to China Igor Morgulov, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, director of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation Dmitry Shugayev, and Roscosmos CEO Yury Borisov.

The talks will be followed by a meeting with an expanded circle of delegates and the ceremony of signing documents. The program will end with a dinner at the Kremlin’s Palace of Facets.

Earlier in the day, Xi met with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. The Chinese leader invited the Russian prime minister to visit China. According to Xi, it is necessary to resume the mechanism of regular meetings between the two countries’ heads of government. Mishustin accepted the invitation.

Xi is on a state visit to Russia from March 20 through 22. On Monday, he had a tete-a-tete informal meeting with Putin, which lasted for 4.5 hours.