Chinese and Russian leaders boast of close ties and warn ‘of a drift back to the law of the jungle’

Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin issued a joint condemnation of “irresponsible” US foreign policy on Wednesday, warning of “a drift back to the law of the jungle”.

The statement came after the Chinese and Russian leaders held a summit in Beijing that followed a visit to the capital by Donald Trump.

The exchanges between Xi and Putin were notably warm and Wednesday’s summit appeared to be more substantive than Xi’s meetings with the US president.