Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin applauded on Monday the solidity of their alliance as the Chinese leader headed to Moscow for a summit with the Russian president.

Xi described his trip as a "journey of friendship, cooperation and peace."

"I look forward to working with President Putin to jointly adopt a new vision" for relations, Xi wrote in a signed article in the newspaper Russian Gazette that was also carried by the Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

China has sought to portray itself as a neutral party in the Russia-Ukraine war, and its foreign ministry said last week that Beijing would "play a constructive role in promoting peace talks" between Moscow and Kyiv.

Beijing in February issued a 12-point position paper calling for dialogue and respect for all countries' territorial sovereignty.

Putin has welcomed Beijing's statements on Ukraine as being indicative of a willingness to play a "constructive role" in ending the conflict while saying Chinese-Russian relations were "at the highest point".