Russia, Chinese FMs Discuss Ties, Ukraine, Korean Peninsula on G20 Sidelines

In this handout picture released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on November 19, 2024, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Russian Foreign Ministry/AFP)
In this handout picture released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on November 19, 2024, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Russian Foreign Ministry/AFP)
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Russia, Chinese FMs Discuss Ties, Ukraine, Korean Peninsula on G20 Sidelines

In this handout picture released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on November 19, 2024, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Russian Foreign Ministry/AFP)
In this handout picture released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on November 19, 2024, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Russian Foreign Ministry/AFP)

Chinese and Russian foreign ministers discussed bilateral ties, the conflict in Ukraine and the situation on the Korean Peninsula on the sidelines of the Group of 20 meeting in Brazil, the foreign ministries of both countries said on Tuesday.

"We are truly at an unprecedented stage in the development of our strategic relations of a comprehensive partnership," Russia's Sergei Lavrov told his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, according to a post on the Russian foreign ministry Telegram channel.

Wang said that Beijing is willing to work with Russia to further strengthen bilateral "comprehensive strategic coordination," the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement.

The "two sides also exchanged views on the Ukraine crisis and the situation on the Korean Peninsula," it added without providing further detail.

The meeting is part of a frenzy of bilateral talks between China and Russia that followed Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine 1,000 days ago. The war ostracized Moscow from Kyiv's Western allies, bringing waves of sanctions on Russian politicians and businesses.

China and Russia declared a "no limits" partnership when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Beijing less than three weeks before his troops marched into Ukraine in February 2022, triggering the deadliest land war in Europe since World War Two.

In May this year, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged a "new era" of partnership between the two most powerful rivals of the United States, which they cast as an aggressive Cold War hegemon sowing chaos across the world.



Russian Drone Attack on Ukraine’s Sumy Region Killed Seven, Zelenskiy Says

 A view shows a residential building, which was damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine November 18, 2024. (Reuters)
A view shows a residential building, which was damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine November 18, 2024. (Reuters)
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Russian Drone Attack on Ukraine’s Sumy Region Killed Seven, Zelenskiy Says

 A view shows a residential building, which was damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine November 18, 2024. (Reuters)
A view shows a residential building, which was damaged by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Sumy, Ukraine November 18, 2024. (Reuters)

Seven people were killed, including a child, in a drone attack by Russia on Ukraine's northeastern region of Sumy, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday.

"Every new Russian strike only confirms (Russian President Vladimir) Putin's true intentions. He wants the war to continue, he is not interested in talking about peace," Zelenskiy said.

The drone attack overnight on a residential building in the small town of Hlukhiv bordering Russia left 12 people wounded, including two children, the military administration of the Sumy region said on the Telegram messaging app.

A video shared by Zelenskiy showed emergency workers sifting through the rubble of the partially destroyed building as search and rescue operations continued into the morning.

The regional military administration said that Russian forces used two drones in the attack.

Ukraine's air force said it shot down 51 drones and lost track of 30 more after Russia launched 87 drones overnight.

Russian forces have pummeled the northeastern region of Sumy in the past months, damaging its critical and civilian infrastructure.

A Sunday missile strike there killed 11 people, injured 89 and cut power in the city of Sumy.