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Vladimir Putin has said Russia and China are fighting “common threats” as he welcomes President Xi Jinping for a three-day trip to Moscow.

Writing in an article in the People’s Daily Newspaper, the Russian president described Mr Xi‘s visit as a “landmark event” that “reaffirms the special nature of the Russia-China partnership”.

The outlet is the official newspaper of the ruling Chinese Communist Party.

Mr Xi has returned the favour in the Kremlin’s Rossiiskaya Gazeta daily, claiming a 12-point peace plan drafted by Beijing last month to end the war in Ukraine reflects “the unity of the world community’s views”.

The Chinese leader’s visit on Monday is the first by a foreign leader since an arrest warrant was issued for his Russian counterpart by the International Criminal Court.

Justice ministers from more than 40 nations, including Britain’s Dominic Raab, will be in London later to support the investigation into alleged war crimes – including the abduction of children.

Ukraine war latest: Putin visit to Mariupol ‘absolutely spontaneous’

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Putin meets ‘residents in Mariupol’

Putin has ‘high expectations’ for Xi talks

Mr Putin – fresh off a highly criticised visit to Mariupol, the Ukrainian city decimated by Russian forces last year – wrote that he and Mr Xi “high expectations for the upcoming talks”.

He described his opposite number as a “good old friend” with whom he enjoys the “warmest relationship”, adding that Russia’s relations with China are “consistently growing stronger” and at “the highest level in their history”

“We have reached an unprecedented level of trust in our political dialogue, our strategic cooperation has become truly comprehensive in nature and is standing on the brink of a new era,” he wrote.

News of Mr Xi’s trip was confirmed on Friday by China’s foreign affairs ministry, with Russia saying that the Chinese president was invited by Mr Putin himself.

Mr Putin is scheduled to have a one-to-one meeting with Mr Xi on Monday, according to the Kremlin, before holding further negotiations on Tuesday and giving a statement to the media.

Read more:
What arrest warrant really means for Vladimir Putin

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Mariupol: What can we make of Putin’s visit?

Xi calls for ‘pragmatism’ on Ukraine

The Chinese president’s article was more focused on the war in Ukraine, during which Beijing has tried to strike a balance between calling for peace and avoiding criticism of Russia.

Mr Xi’s regime has denied US and NATO accusations that it is considering supplying arms to aid the illegal invasion, which Mr Putin continues to insist in his article was “fuelled by the West”.

He claimed he is “open to the political and diplomatic resolution of the Ukraine crisis” and welcomed Mr Xi’s recent ceasefire proposals, which the Chinese leader promoted in his article.

His country’s peace plan – which includes respecting “the sovereignty of all countries” and ending any sanctions – is “constructive” and promotes a “political settlement”, Mr Xi claimed.

“Complex problems do not have simple solutions,” he said, but added an end to the war would ensure “the stability of global production and supply chains”.

A resolution can be found “if everyone is guided by the concept of common, comprehensive, joint and sustainable security, and continue dialogue and consultations in an equal, prudent and pragmatic manner”, he wrote.

Read more:
Putin’s trip to Ukraine is all for the cameras
How steelworks became final outpost in battle for Mariupol

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Could Moldova be Russia’s next target?

Economic partnership is ‘priority’

Mr Putin and Mr Xi also stressed the importance of their countries’ economic partnership.

Russia has been broadly cut off from Western markets since the war began in February 2022, but Mr Putin wrote his country’s trade with China is “growing, further strengthening the sovereignty of our relations”.

Mr Xi said Beijing and Moscow wanted “an all-encompassing partnership” that would deliver in a world threatened by “acts of hegemony, despotism, and bullying”.

The two men’s mutual commitment came as Ukraine signed a new digital trade deal with the UK to help support its economy during the war and future rebuild.

It gives Ukrainian businesses access to UK financial services, and allows them to trade more efficiently and cheaply through electronic transactions, e-signatures, and e-contracts.

The deal signed virtually on Monday was agreed in principle in November.

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs – in worst day for indexes since COVID

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs - in worst day for indexes since COVID

Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.

While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.

As it happened: Worst week’s trading in five years

All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.

The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.

Read more: What’s a bear market?

Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.

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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.

The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.

And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.

Pic: Reuters
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US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters

Trump holds trade deal talks – reports

It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indian and Israeli representatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.

The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.

Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.

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Do Trump’s tariffs add up?

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Markets gave Trump a clear no-confidence vote
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow

China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.

Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.

Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.

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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump

He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’

“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they’re also battling with another problem

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they're also battling with another problem

Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.

The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.

The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.

Tariffs latest: FTSE 100 suffers biggest daily drop since COVID

Financial investors had been gradually re-calibrating their expectations of Donald Trump over the past few months.

Hopes that his actions may not match his rhetoric were dashed on Wednesday as he imposed sweeping tariffs on the US’ trading partners, ratcheting up protectionism to a level not seen in more than a century.

Markets were always going to respond to that but they are also battling with another problem: the lack of certainty when it comes to Trump.

More on Donald Trump

He is a capricious figure and we can only guess his next move. Will he row back? How far is he willing to negotiate and offer concessions?

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There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow
Trade war sparks ‘$2.2trn’ global market sell-off

These are massive unknowns, which are piled on to uncertainty about how countries will respond.

China has already retaliated and Europe has indicated it will go further.

That will compound the problems for the global economy and undoubtedly send shivers through the markets.

Much is yet to be determined, but if there’s one thing markets hate, it’s uncertainty.

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

South Korea’s constitutional court has confirmed the dismissal of President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached in December after declaring martial law.

His decision to send troops onto the streets led to the country’s worst political crisis in decades.

The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.

The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.

Demonstrators who stayed overnight near the constitutional court wait for the start of a rally calling for the president to step down. Pic: AP
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Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP

Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.

The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.

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The Constitutional Court is under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement of the impeachment trial. Pic: AP
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The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP

After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.

He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.

His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.

The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.

South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.

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