President Vladimir Putin welcomed his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, to Russia on Tuesday, as the Kremlin head prepares to host several leaders of developing nations at an intergovernmental summit this week.

"The process of forming a multipolar world order is underway, a dynamic and irreversible process," Putin told gathered leaders from countries, including India and China, at the official opening of the summit.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday at the BRICS summit in Russia, India's foreign secretary said, their first meeting since 2020 when ties nosedived after their forces clashed on their disputed frontier.