China made a deal to buy Russian oil and gas after Europe cut supplies during the Ukraine war. As China takes a major hit from Trump's tariffs, Beijing's ties with the Kremlin increasingly intertwine.

President Vladimir Putin noted that he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping would discuss bilateral and global issues at their summit in Moscow, as well as Russia’s supply of oil and gas to China, and cooperation within BRICS — the bloc of developing economies that initially included Brazil,