Sam Hancock
Live reporter

We're going to end our live coverage there of President Xi's state visit to Moscow, thanks for following along over the last two days.

There were lots of questions going into this visit, particularly in the West around Beijing's 12-point plan for peace in Ukraine.

It's not clear whether that document can eventually be the basis for resolving the war in Ukraine, as President Putin suggested today, or even whether it will encourage peace talks to take place.

What is clear, though, is Russia and China's commitment to keep supporting one another. What this means in the long term, we'll have to wait and see.

Thanks to my colleagues who helped write the page: Ece Goksedef, Laura Gozzi and Jack Burgess. And, once again, to my fellow editor Jeremy Gahagan. Thanks also to our colleagues on the ground in Russia and China for their helpful analysis. See you soon.

Jack Burgess
Live reporter

It's almost time for us to say goodbye on this page, but first let's have a reminder of today's main events.

The second day... of President Xi Jinping's trip to Moscow kicked off with a meeting between him and Russian PM Mikhail Mishustin, before formal discussions at the Kremlin with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

A red carpet, fanfares and guard of honour... welcomed Xi to the Grand Kremlin Palace, as did some very shiny floors. We captured all that here.

Following their meeting... Xi said China was on the "right side of history" when it comes to Ukraine and that talks with Putin were "frank, open and friendly". Putin said China was Russia's "leading foreign trade" partner and promised to surpass last year's "high level" of trade.

Putin also said... Russia would be forced to react if the UK sent depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine, which we reported on here, and that he believed Beijing's Ukraine peace plan could be the basis for settling the war in Ukraine.

Elsewhere Nato's secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg... warned China not to provide lethal aid to Russia. He also said he expects Finland to become a member of the military alliance before the Turkish parliamentary elections on 14 May.

And Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishid... paid a surprise visit to Ukraine, in a show of solidarity with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Image source, SERGEY KARPUHIN/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Dr Yu Jie
Senior research fellow on China at Chatham House

With the talks in Moscow wrapped up, there seems to be less agreement on what will be the next step for Beijing’s “peace plan” in Ukraine.

Xi Jinping referred to the discussions he had with Vladimir Putin as “friendly, frank and open”, implying some disagreements may remain between Beijing and Moscow.

As for Putin’s words - that “many provisions of the Chinese peace plan can be taken as the basis for settling the conflict in Ukraine, whenever the West and Kyiv are ready for it" - the Russian president knows too well that the collective West and Kyiv are not ready to accept this proposal.

Of course, Xi and Putin have jointly expressed their satisfaction on deepening trade ties in various sectors. That seems to be the least thorny issue in this bilateral summit.

Russia's most senior government figures are now commenting on the UK's declaration that it would supply depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine.

Sergei Shoigu, the Russian minister of defence, just said that "another line has been passed - there are fewer and fewer of them."

Earlier, foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said: "Nothing could surprise me." He also said that London has "lost its way" and that its actions are "underminining stability" around the world. Lavrov said that if the UK does send depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine, it means it is "ready to violate international humanitarian law as in 1999 in Yugoslavia".

"There is no doubt this will end badly for London," Lavrov added.

And Russia's representative at the European Organization for Security and Cooperation (OCSE), Konstantin Gavrilov, said that Moscow would consider the supply of depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine as using "dirty nuclear bombs".

Sam Hancock
Live reporter

Well that was certainly a flurry of excitement as we heard from both leaders.

If you're just joining us, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin have finished their talks in Moscow and just spoke to assembled officials and reporters at the Kremlin. They're now going to have dinner, we're told.

We're going to bring you a full round-up of what was said, and the day's events, shortly but until then I wanted to say thanks for following along so far. There's been a lot to digest.

We're not far away from the moment we'll say goodbye on this page but until then, hang tight for the round-up.

Xi references the trade relationship between Russia and China in much the same way Putin did.

He says there'll be a focus on growing the following three areas:

• Energy trade
• Raw material trade
• Electronics trade

After briefly mentioning the need to strengthen humanitarian ties, Xi also refers to Beijing's Ukraine peace plan. He says China is for peace.

Last month, he goes on, China published its stance on the situation in Ukraine. "I'd like to emphasise that we're constantly guided by the UN charter, adhering to an unbiased position."

He says his government's in favour of active reconciliation and "always for peace and dialogue".

China stands on the right side of history, he adds, in what appears to be a veiled criticism of the West for supplying Ukraine with weapons.

It's Xi Jinping's turn to talk now. He says, via a translator, that he's "very happy" to be in Moscow with Putin and thanks him for the "traditional hospitality and warm welcome".

Xi says the two have supported each other for more than 10 years, and will continue to do so. He says their talks were "frank, open and friendly".

He repeats some of the language that's been used during the trip, including that the countries are "strategic partners".

"The Chinese and Russia ties have gone far beyond bilateral communications," Xi tells reporters at the Kremlin.

Putin said: "Many provisions of the Chinese peace plan can be taken as the basis for settling of the conflict in Ukraine, whenever the West and Kyiv are ready for it."

He also said he and Xi had paid great attention to Beijing's peace proposals during their one-on-one meetings.

Putin then says that if the UK supplies ammunition with depleted uranium to Ukraine, Russia will be forced to react.

Baroness Goldie of the Ministry of Defence said yesterday that the UK will be sending such ammunition to Ukraine alongside Challenger 2 tanks - we reported on this earlier.

Putin is reading out the joint statement to the press. He starts off by saying that Russia' priority are trade and economic co-operation with China."

"China is the leading foreign trade partner of Russia," he says, pledging to keep up and surpass the "high level" of trade achieved last year.

Putin says Russia and China will develop ties in finance, transport and logistics area, as well as energy. China is now the leader in imports of Russia oil, Putin notes, and gas imports are growing too.

He then says that Russia and China are"continuing to develop the peaceful use of the nuclear power - Russia is helping to build nuclear power stations in China".

Russian news agency TASS reports that the talks between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping are over.

The two leaders are now signing two joint documents: one detailing plans for economic cooperation and one on plans to deepen the Russia-China partnership.

A joint statement to the press is expected soon.

We've more from Nato's secretary-general now.

Jens Stoltenberg has said he expects Finland to become a member of the alliance before the Turkish parliamentary elections on 14 May.

He said that he has received "assurances" that the Hungarian parliament will ratify the Finnish accession protocol in the near future, and that the Turkish parliament will do the same before the May elections.

As for Sweden's accession, Stoltenberg said he could not give a specific date but that it was a "priority".

Laura Gozzi
Live reporter

Away from talks at the Kremlin... Yesterday, Baroness Goldie - a UK minister of state for defence - said in a written answer, external to a Parliamentary question that the UK would be sending "ammunition including armour piercing rounds which contain depleted uranium" to Ukraine alongside a squadron of Challenger 2 tanks. She added that "such rounds are highly effective in defeating modern tanks and armoured vehicles".

Depleted uranium is a by-product of enrichment of natural uranium for nuclear fuel. It's about 40% less radioactive than the starting material, and is capable of penetrating shells and bombs and of piercing tanks.

This ammunition was used in both Gulf Wars and in Yugoslavia, and its use has long raised concerns about health threats from exposure to uranium.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called the UK plan to send such ammunition a "Yugoslavia scenario", saying it caused cancer and infected the environment. But the effects of depleted uranium are debated.

Research , externalpublished by the European Commission states that exposure to and intake of depleted uranium “appear to be below established tolerable levels for uranium" and that environmental "contamination in war zones is generally low, except in areas close to destroyed vehicles and penetrators."

However, many experts remain convinced that there are plausible links between congenital malformations and the use of depleted uranium.

A 2013 Lancet article, external quoted several researchers who cited the example of Iraq, where Allied forces are known to have used the ammunition in both the 1991 and the 2003 wars - after which certain areas of the country reported a significant increase in birth defects.

We're beginning to hear some of what Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin are saying at their summit.

The pair appear to be setting out plans to strengthen their relationship as their individual rifts with Western countries grow.

Moscow is ready to help Chinese businesses replace Western firms that have left Russia as a result of the war in Ukraine, Putin told Xi, adding:

Xi meanwhile told his Russian counterpart that China and Russia "should cooperate closely to achieve new goals", according to quotes cited by Reuters and attributed to Russian state TV.

Image source, Reuters

Dr Yu Jie
Senior research fellow on China at Chatham House

Precisely how far China will go in supporting Russia has been one of the most important questions of the war in Ukraine - and Xi Jinping will have to answer it following his three-day visit.

Judging by yesterday's informal meeting between Xi and Vladimir Putin, the two sides exchanged all kinds of diplomatic niceties. While Xi re-emphasised China’s ties with Russia as “no-alliance, no-confrontation and not targeting any third party”, there appears to have been very little military discussions.

China’s foreign policy has always been shaped by interests rather than values. Even when it comes to Russia, the two countries’ bond is based mainly on shared resentment of US hegemony. By deepening their bilateral cooperation in recent years, they have been able to achieve a level of great-power status with which to counterbalance America.

Image source, Reuters

Xi's goal for this trip is to preserve the status quo with Russia, not to move an inch closer or pave the way for new cooperation.

Russia’s war has left the West more firmly united than it has been in years. And as China’s relations with the US have reached new lows, Chinese leaders want to avoid alienating the EU, which is one of the country’s biggest trading partners.

China also made strenuous efforts to avoid taking explicit sides. By all means, the war in Ukraine is not China’s conflict. As a result, an unconfirmed phone call between Xi and President Zelensky might prove necessary to seek that precarious balance.

The war in Ukraine continues to test China’s ability to navigate a thorny patch of conflicting interests and rapidly changing sentiments.

Image source, REUTERS/Johanna Geron

"China should not provide lethal aid to Russia," Nato's secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg has warned, as Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin are locked in talks at the Kremlin.

The Nato chief told reporters in Brussels that "we haven't seen any proof" of China delivering lethal weapons but there are some signs of it being "a request from Russia".

He adds that if China did so, it would be supporting "an illegal war".

Image source, PAVEL BYRKIN/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

With Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin engaged in what's likely to be a lengthy conversation, let's take a look at what the pair may discuss.

We don't know exactly what's on the agenda but these are some of the issues most likely to be brought up.

• Ukraine: Russia's invasion and China's 12-point peace proposal to end the fighting, which Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier had already been discussed by the leaders yesterday - though he wouldn't give any more detail than that
• Economic ties: Russia is a source of oil for Beijing's huge economy and is seen as a partner in standing up to the US. Xi has already promised that China plans to "continue prioritising its strategic partnership" with Moscow
• Trade: China's support for Russia is currently based around technology and trade - the fear in Kyiv is that this might turn to military, potentially including artillery shells. Western governments have repeatedly warned China against supplying Russia with arms

Back in Moscow, we're seeing the first images of Xi Jinping's arrival at the Kremlin.

It seems Vladimir Putin pulled out all the stops to give his "dear friend"- as he described him yesterday - as grand a welcome as possible. Take a look.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, EPA

Image source, EPA

Image source, EPA

Image source, Reuters

From one arrival to another... Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has now arrived in Ukraine and is visiting Bucha. Pictures show him being accompanied through the city by military officials.

He's expected to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv later to voice support and solidarity with Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia.

Japan’s foreign ministry said Kishida is there to convey "his respect for the courage and perseverance of the Ukrainian people standing up to defend their homeland against Russia".

Tokyo has voiced support for Ukraine since the beginning of war and joined other G7 countries in extending sanctions against Russia. But Kishida had been the only G7 leader not to visit Ukraine, until today.

Steve Rosenberg
Russia editor, reporting from Moscow

Image source, Reuters

When Xi Jinping arrived at the Grand Kremlin Palace, he climbed the main staircase past a guard of honour.

To a fanfare, he entered the main hall from one side and President Putin entered from the other. They walked down the red carpet towards each other and met beside giant flags of Russia and China.

After the national anthems, the two delegations started their talks.

Plenty of pomp. But think of the circumstance: Russia, under heavy international sanctions and increasingly reliant on China, is keen to honour the visiting Chinese leader.