Russian President Vladimir Putin smiled and waved enthusiastically to his Chinese counterpart during virtual talks on Tuesday.

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.

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.

Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed ties with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, as the two face a more geopolitically assertive US government led by Donald Trump, who criticised the Kremlin's war against Ukraine on the first day of his second term as president.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had a video call hours after Donald Trump was sworn in yesterday, pledging to bring bilateral ties to "greater heights", according to state media on both sides.

US President Donald Trump has acknowledged Kyiv’s readiness for a “deal” to end the Russia-Ukraine war, but it takes two to tango. He is now signaling to China, urging joint efforts to persuade Vladimir Putin to reach a peaceful resolution.

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping pledged to take China-Russian relations to a “higher level”, hours after Donald Trump took office. The pair spoke over the phone on Monday and discussed future relations with the United States, the war in Ukraine and Taiwan.

Speaking with Putin in a video meeting, Xi called for coping with uncertainties of the external environment with the stability and resilience of China-Russia relations, jointly promoting the development and revitalization of the two countries, and upholding international fairness and justice.

China's President Xi Jinping spoke with Russia's Vladimir Putin over video call on Tuesday, Chinese national broadcaster CCTV said.

Trump should reflect on the ramifications of his comments about Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal.

In the 1.5-hour video call, the leaders discussed the need to “cope with the uncertainty of the external environment”.

Putin and Xi praised strong bilateral ties, highlighting shared interests and global stability, as Trump began his term as the 47th US president.