China and Russia's "profound" relationship will not change despite the turbulence in global geopolitics, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his counterpart Vladimir Putin at the opening of the BRICS summit in Kazan on Tuesday.

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.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told Russia's Vladimir Putin that the international situation was gripped by chaos but that Beijing's strategic partnership with Moscow was a force for stability amid the most significant changes seen in a century.