Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed ties with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, as the two face a more geopolitically assertive US government led by Donald Trump, who criticised the Kremlin's war against Ukraine on the first day of his second term as president.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a video call hours after President Donald Trump re-entered the White House and pledged to "deepen" their partnership.

Following Trump's inauguration, Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin held a virtual meeting to strengthen bilateral relations between China and Russia.

Chinese President Xi Jinping held a meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin via a video link on Tuesday, state broadcaster CCTV reported. The talks came hours after US President Donald Trump returned to the White House and said he would meet Putin “very soon”.

Trump said that China holds great power in resolving the current situation and expressed willingness to work together to end the war in Ukraine. He also said Ukraine was ready for a deal.

Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences to President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping over the earthquake that struck China's Tibet Autonomous Region. “Please, accept most sincere condolences on the tragic aftermath of the ...

President Donald Trump is threatening to impose stiff taxes, tariffs and sanctions on Russia if an agreement isn’t reached to end the war in Ukraine.

He also said, however, that the call was "not connected with Trump's inauguration in any way". The call lasted about one-and-a-half hours, during which Putin and Xi also discussed

Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed ties with Russia during a video call with Vladimir Putin as he urged deeper cooperation a day after Donald Trump’s inauguration as U.S. president.

Putin and Xi praised strong bilateral ties, highlighting shared interests and global stability, as Trump began his term as the 47th US president.