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.

FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping take part in an official welcoming ceremony for delegations' heads at the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, 23 October 2024. MAXIM SHIPENKOV/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

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.

Vice President Han Zheng, China’s representative at Donald Trump's inauguration, is a trusted adviser to President Xi Jinping and a long-time survivor of Chinese politics who rose from toiling on a collective farm and in factories to becoming one of the most powerful people in the country.

Once seen as infallible, Xi Jinping faces mounting challenges due to his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, strained foreign relations, and internal dissent. Opposition groups are emerging in China, including senior party members,

Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump held their first phone talks in four years Friday. According to Trump, he spoke with Xi about TikTok, just hours before the Supreme upheld a law set to ban the social media platform in the United States in less than 48 hours.

The call came the same day that the US Supreme Court backed a law banning TikTok unless it’s sold by its China-based parent company.View on euronews

Trump has said he has a "warm spot" for the app, a distinct change of heart after his first administration first called for a ban on TikTok.

Vice President Han Zheng, China’s representative at Donald Trump’s inauguration, is a trusted adviser to President Xi Jinping.

On the eve of Trump's inauguration, a CPC-owned newspaper said it looks forward to "greater progress at this new starting point."

Fan Weiqu rammed his car into a crowd, killing 35 people, while 21-year-old Xu Jiajin killed eight people and injured 17 in a stabbing attack last year.View on euronews