Russia President Vladimir Putin meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping and celebrates Xi's birthday in Dushanbe, capital city of Tajikistan, on June 15, 2019. Photo: Xinhua

Over the past decade or so, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin have shared many memorable moments during their interactions. They have celebrated each other's birthdays, shared various delicacies and attended sports events together - all pointing to the close friendship between the two leaders as well as the two countries they lead.   

As the Russian President makes his way to Beijing for the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, more memorable moments are expected as the two leaders will meet face to face for the first time in two years.

Over the past five years, Xi and Putin have met each other over 20 times at the Kremlin, in Beijing, Sochi, Xiamen, and other places and on numerous occasions focusing on bilateral relations as well as regional and global issues. 

About a week after becoming Chinese President in early 2013, Xi embarked on his first state visit overseas and headed to Russia - a clear sign of the great importance he attaches to the China-Russia relationship and the beginning of a close friendship rare among world leaders. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) is awarded by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called, the highest order of Russia, after their talks in Moscow, July 4, 2017. Photo: Xinhua

Xi was afforded the highest level of protocol, and there were many "first times" since then. For example, a mounted guard of honor welcomed a foreign head of state to the Kremlin for the first time, and Russia's Defense Ministry and Armed Forces Command Center opened their doors to a foreign head of state also for the first time.

In previous interviews, Putin described Xi with various positive words, such as "approachable and sincere," "a partner you can rely on," "a remarkable thinker who likes to analyze problems," among others. 

Besides their formal frequent encounters, every time the two leaders appear together, the spotlight followed, with details of their interactions not only attracting the attention of the public but also fully underscoring this rare friendship between world-class leaders.

Among the memorable moments, the sharing of delicacies from the two countries by the leaders has stirred a buzz across social media. 

During a visit to China in June 2018 to attend the Qingdao SCO Summit, Putin tried his hand at cooking some local dishes such as Go-believe steamed buns and Jianbing (Chinese crepes) at a banquet in Tianjin with Xi.

The two leaders also share memorable moments in celebrating each other's birthdays.

In October 2013, during the APEC Indonesia Summit in Bali, which coincided with Putin's 61st birthday, Xi personally presented Putin with a birthday cake.

Putin said Xi was the only world leader to have celebrated a birthday with him in person at the time. They also tasted vodka and ate sausages to celebrate in typical Russian style.

This was not to be the last birthday celebration between the two leaders. Xi celebrated his 66th birthday on June 15, 2019, with Putin, who gave Xi ice cream as a present.

Before attending the fifth Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia in Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan, Putin went to Xi's hotel to congratulate him on his birthday in person. Xi gave Putin some Chinese tea in return.

Pictures from Chinese official media showed the two leaders holding up champagne glasses to toast Xi's birthday, while inspecting a white cake decorated with red and blue confectionary flowers with red-colored Chinese characters reading "double six, great fortune," a traditional Chinese birthday greeting.

Ahead of Putin's visit to China for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics, Russian Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov told a press conference on January 25 that he hopes Putin can have a chance to eat dumplings during his visit this time, as Chinese people celebrate the Spring Festival. 

"Especially considering his past experience, he is already an 'expert' at making dumplings," said the envoy.

Apart from sharing delicacies and drinks, the two leaders also share a common interest in sports. 

In 2018, before a friendly ice hockey match between Chinese and Russian youth teams in Tianjin, Xi and Putin posed for group photos with the teams and jointly dropped the puck to start the match.

Xi attended the opening ceremony of the 22nd Winter Olympics in Sochi eight years ago, which was the first time a Chinese leader had attended a major international sporting event abroad.

"If our neighbors have a joyous occasion, we certainly should go there to congratulate them," Xi said at the time.

Putin has also returned the favor, as he became the first foreign leader who confirmed his attendance at the Beijing Winter Olympics. 

With their face-to-face meeting and more memorable moments during Putin's visit, the two leaders will also add more significance to the Winter Olympics, more impetus to bilateral ties and a sense of stability to a world that is facing changes unseen in a century.