What did the Xi-Putin meeting mean to Xi Jinping? Why did he miss the dinner at SCO meeting?

After 32 months, Xi Jinping left China to visit Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit. Xi Jinping’s highly anticipated meeting with Vladimir Putin, however, was given unusually low-profile coverage in their respective home country. What’s unusual about this Xi-Putin meeting? And why did Xi skip the dinner for the heads of state attending the SCO meeting? Lei offers her insight into Xi’s 1st trip in 3 years.