Related video: Russia arrests US journalist on espionage allegations
France’s president Emmanuel Macron has urged his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to bring Russia “back to its senses” over its war in Ukraine.
The conflict – and need to avoid a nuclear escalation – was notable on the agenda as Mr Macron and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen visited Beijing, days after Moscow vowed to station part of its arsenal in Belarus. The United States has nuclear weapons stationed with several European Nato partners.
China’s leader agreed that all countries should abide by the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, with a French diplomatic source claiming that Mr Macron and Mr Xi had agreed to “work hard” to bring both parties to the negotiating table.
Meanwhile, Britain’s Ministry of Defence said it believed that Vladimir Putin has fired Colonel-General Rustam Muradov as commander of the Eastern Group of Forces (EGF) in Ukraine, marking the most senior Russian military dismissal of 2023 so far.
The group has “suffered exceptionally heavy casualties in recent months as its poorly conceived assaults repeatedly failed to capture” the Donetsk town of Vuhledar, the ministry said.
