Chinese leader Xi Jinping vowed to take his country’s ties with Russia to a new level this year in a video conference with counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, hours after the inauguration of US President Donald Trump.

President Donald Trump has threatened further sanctions against Russia if Vladimir Putin did not agree to negotiations to end the war in Ukraine, it has been reported. Trump said he was talking to Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelensky and that the U.

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.

Trump has the levers to force Putin to end the Russia-Ukraine war promptly if he dispenses with the Biden Administration’s tepid, inconsistent economic pressure.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would likely impose sanctions on Russia if its president, Vladimir Putin, refuses to negotiate about ending the war in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on taking office hours before Trump's inauguration in Washington and said he was open to dialogue with the new U.S. administration on Ukraine and nuclear arms.

US President Donald Trump suggests more sanctions on Russia if President Vladimir Putin does not engage in negotiating an end to the Ukraine war. Trum

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.

Trump said on Sunday: "I will end the war in Ukraine, stop the chaos in the Middle East and prevent World War III from happening."

The Russian president stressed he was open to dialogue with the new US administration on Ukraine and nuclear arms

The new US president made the comments as Russia was hit by a huge Ukranian drone strike - with reports of a 250-kilogram bomb exploding on a military factory with 4,300 employees