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Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed on Tuesday how to build ties with Donald Trump, prospects for a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine and Moscow's firm support for Beijing's position on Taiwan. Xi and Putin, who spoke for an hour and 35 minutes by video call after Trump was sworn in as U.S. president on Monday -snip- Putin, 72, speaking from his Novo-Ogarevo residency outside Moscow and Xi, 71, speaking from the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, called each other "dear friends", and Xi told Putin about a call with Trump...

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin sent greetings to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on the occasion of North Korea's founding anniversary, state media KCNA said on Monday. "I am sure that the comprehensive strategic partnership between Russia and the DPRK will be strengthened in a planned way thanks to our joint efforts," Putin said, according to KCNA.

Vladimir Putin tried to engage Xi Jinping with eye-contact during their meeting today, but it is clear that the Chinese president is the senior partner in the relationship between the world leaders, according to a body language expert. -snip- But amid the deepening partnership between the two nations, body language expert and author of 26 books on the subject Judi James said the meeting was perhaps more one-sided than Putin would want the world to believe. The Russian employed subtle ways to show the bond between the two despots, Ms James said. But Xi, she noted, 'didn't get the memo.'...

Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Shanghai, China, on Wednesday afternoon for meetings with senior officials, receiving no significant honors upon his landing and preceded by loud warnings from the Foreign Ministry to avoid challenging the Communist Party on its belligerent policies. Blinken is expected to stay in China for three days, beginning his journey in the economic heart of China, Shanghai, and then traveling north to Beijing to meet top officials. According to the State Department, Blinken is expected to address a wide variety of international issues, many of them not directly relevant to China such as “the...