Russian President Vladimir Putin smiled and waved enthusiastically to his Chinese counterpart during virtual talks on Tuesday.

Join Fox News for access to this content Plus special access to select articles and other premium content with your account - free of charge. By entering your email and pushing continue, you are agreeing to Fox News' Terms of Use and Privacy Policy,

Russian President Vladimir Putin told Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday that Moscow and Beijing's foreign policy ties played a stabilising role in international affairs.

The presidents sought to capture some of the media spotlight that was focused on the flurry of executive orders signed by Trump. Amid all the noise in Washington following the return of the Republican bulldozer to the White House,

President Trump said Tuesday it was likely he would impose additional sanctions on Russia if it did not come to the negotiating table to broker a ceasefire in Ukraine. “Sounds likely,”

Russian President Vladimir Putin has had a call with Chinese President Xi Jinping, emphasizing the two countries’ close ties, a day after Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th U.S. president.

The two leaders have developed strong personal ties that helped boost relations between Moscow and Beijing, growing even closer after Putin sent troops into Ukraine in 2022.

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.

Vladimir Putin’s forces have suffered nearly 2,000 casualties in a single day, Ukraine’s military has claimed, in what would mark one of the deadliest 24 hours of fighting since the war began.Kyiv’s military claimed the vast toll as another day of intense fighting unfolded,

The president postponed what appeared to be a looming clash on trade and expressed a willingness to talk business, but he remains critical of Beijing.

Russia will return to Europe with an army 10 times the size of that which invaded Ukraine in 2022, Zelensky warns