Clear statement from China. It's about Russia

During Wednesday's meeting with the President of Russia in Beijing, Chinese leader Xi Jinping emphasized that China and Russia maintain strong ties and close cooperation. He noted that trust between the two powers is continuously growing, and mutual trade exchange is reaching record levels.

Xi Jinping called for tightening cooperation between Russia and China in order to maintain, as he himself put it, "equality and justice" on the international stage.

Putin's visit to Beijing is the second official overseas trip of the Russian leader since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for him in relation to the deportations of Ukrainian children conducted by Russia in March.

Putin's first official foreign visit after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for him was a meeting with the leaders of Kyrgyzstan. Currently, Putin is participating in the Belt and Road Forum, which is taking place in the capital of China.

According to information provided by Vietnamese media, the President of Vietnam, Vo Van Thuong, met with Putin on the sidelines of a forum in Beijing. Thuong invited the Russian leader to visit Vietnam, and Putin accepted the invitation with pleasure.

It's worth noting that Vietnam, like Kyrgyzstan, is not a member of the ICC - it has not signed the Rome Statute, which is the basis for the establishment of the Court.