China’s President Xi Jinping has advised Russia’s Vladimir Putin he’s happy to see Moscow keep contact with the US to advance a political decision of the Ukraine disaster.
The remarks throughout a telephone name between the 2 leaders on Friday come after the Kremlin mentioned President Putin would meet US President Donald Trump within the coming days.
Throughout the telephone name, Xi mentioned China would keep its stance on the necessity for peace talks and a diplomatic resolution to the Russia-Ukraine struggle, Chinese language state broadcaster CCTV reported.
The Kremlin mentioned Putin had known as his Chinese language counterpart to replace him on the newest US-Russia talks, throughout which Xi expressed assist for a “long-term” resolution to the Ukraine battle.
The decision between Xi and Putin was their second in lower than two months. Putin is anticipated to go to China in September for occasions marking the eightieth anniversary of the tip of World Struggle II.
The 2 international locations have additional bolstered their financial, commerce and safety cooperation since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which triggered a pointy deterioration in Moscow’s relations with the West.
China has by no means denounced Russia’s struggle nor known as for it to withdraw its troops, and plenty of of Ukraine’s allies imagine that Beijing has offered assist to Moscow. Beijing insists it’s a impartial celebration, commonly calling for an finish to the preventing whereas additionally accusing Western international locations of prolonging the battle by arming Ukraine.
Trump has voiced rising frustration with Putin over the shortage of progress in direction of peace in Ukraine and has threatened to impose heavy tariffs on international locations that purchase Russian oil, together with China.
The US president on Wednesday mentioned he might announce additional tariffs on China much like the 25 p.c duties he has already imposed on India over its purchases of Russian oil.
In response to these remarks, a Chinese language overseas ministry spokesperson mentioned on Friday that Beijing’s commerce and vitality cooperation with Russia was “simply and legit”.
“We are going to proceed to take affordable measures to make sure vitality safety based mostly on our personal nationwide pursuits,” Guo Jiakun mentioned in a press release.
Calls with different allies
Putin and Trump are set to carry talks, though no agency date or venue has been set. Either side have confirmed preparations for a summit are beneath means and have steered {that a} assembly might happen subsequent week.
China has been talked about in media reviews as a potential venue for the Putin-Trump summit, with hypothesis that Trump might be a part of Putin there in early September.
The Kremlin additionally mentioned Putin had spoken to the leaders of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and briefed them on talks he held with US envoy Steve Witkoff on Wednesday.
Putin additionally mentioned Ukraine in a telephone name with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Friday, the Belarusian state information company BelTA reported.
Indian President Narendra Modi additionally held a telephone name with Putin to debate the scenario in Ukraine and bilateral relations.
“Had an excellent and detailed dialog with my good friend President Putin. I thanked him for sharing the newest developments on Ukraine,” Modi mentioned on X.
The Indian president added that he seemed ahead to internet hosting Putin in India later this 12 months, with out specifying the date.
Had an excellent and detailed dialog with my good friend President Putin. I thanked him for sharing the newest developments on Ukraine. We additionally reviewed the progress in our bilateral agenda, and reaffirmed our dedication to additional deepen the India-Russia Particular and Privileged…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 8, 2025
Pause in battle could also be ‘shut’
The calls got here amid rising hopes for a breakthrough within the Ukraine struggle, now in its fourth 12 months. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk mentioned on Friday {that a} pause within the battle may very well be shut, after talking to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Tusk mentioned Zelenskyy was “very cautious however optimistic” and that Ukraine was eager that Poland and different European international locations play a job in planning for a ceasefire and an eventual peace settlement.
“There are particular indicators, and we even have an instinct, that maybe a freeze within the battle – I don’t need to say the tip, however a freeze within the battle – is nearer than it’s additional away,” he advised a information convention on Friday. “There are hopes for this.”
Trump’s efforts to strain Putin into stopping the preventing have thus far delivered little progress. Russia’s greater military is slowly advancing deeper into Ukraine whereas it relentlessly bombards Ukrainian cities. Russia and Ukraine are far aside on their phrases for peace.
Nearly two weeks in the past, Trump moved up his ultimatum to impose further sanctions on Russia, in addition to introduce secondary tariffs focusing on international locations that purchase Russian oil, if no Kremlin strikes in direction of a settlement had been forthcoming.
The deadline expired on Friday. It was unclear what steps Trump meant to take as a consequence.
