Wang Yi urges Pacific region not to be ‘too anxious’ about China’s aims after failing to agree on a sweeping security deal.

As a horrified world searches for a way to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin’s brutal war against Ukraine, there is one person who might be able to get through to the Kremlin’s dangerously isolated autocrat.

When Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen became the first head of state to visit Myanmar since the military seized power in a coup last year, he seemed to think he would be able to bring the generals back into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) despite the country’s worsening humanitarian crisis.“I am thinking whether we should keep ASEAN nine or ASEAN 10, because, in the recent ASEAN Summit, we have only nine, this is a problem,” he said ahead of the January trip.

United States (US) President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, have begun their first direct talks since November, amid growing US concern over Beijing’s relationship with Russia and its stance on the increasingly brutal war in Ukraine.Biden and Xi began speaking at 13:00 GMT on Friday, the White House said, amid warnings from Washington that China may be considering providing military support to Russia.

For Chinese President Xi Jinping, the initial response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s brutal war on Ukraine must have seemed a no-brainer.

Some weeks can feel like decades, and this week has been one of them. With Russia’s naked act of aggression against Ukraine, the tragedy of war has erupted in Europe once again. Russian forces have shelled residential housing, schools, hospitals, and other civilian infrastructure. The Kremlin’s propaganda machine has been pushed into overdrive in its effort to justify the unjustifiable.

In recent days, Beijing has called for calm on both sides and the end of a Cold War mentality, while also making it clear it supports Moscow's concerns.It would seem obvious that China would side with its long-time ally and former Communist comrade Russia.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) urged an "immediate" end to violence in Myanmar on Wednesday and for the junta to allow a special envoy tasked with facilitating talks to visit as soon as possible.The 10-nation regional bloc has led diplomatic efforts to end the chaos unleashed in Myanmar by the coup last year, which triggered mass protests and a deadly crackdown on dissent.But violence has continued, with anti-junta groups clashing regularly with the military and

Recent talks in Geneva between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and United States (US) Secretary of State Antony Blinken regarding the crisis over Ukraine achieved little. Russia asked for a written response to its demands, which include a halt to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) enlargement.

Tensions between Ukraine and Russia, which has massed troops along their border, has drawn Washington and Moscow into a Cold War-style stand-off.Here is a timeline of the spiralling situation.Troop Movements On 10 November, 2021 NATO warns Moscow about taking "aggressive action" after Washington reports unusual troops movements near the Ukrainian border.Russian President Vladimir Putin accuses the West of "supplying modern weapons to Kyiv" and staging provocative