🇷🇺 🇨🇳 China and Russia remain strategically determined and committed to a multipolar world, Wang Yi, head of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party's Central Committee, told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

💬 “We will have an independent and autonomous foreign policy,” the two senior diplomats said.

▪️ Lavrov stressed the close cooperation between Russia and China, despite the turmoil on the world stage.

▪️ He added that he hopes that new agreements will emerge as a result of today's talks.

▪️ The Chinese official's visit comes as Moscow and Beijing have increased bilateral economic, trade and diplomatic cooperation, in a bid to overcome sanctions and to create more balanced, multi-polar world.

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⚡️ Putin, China's Wang Yi to meet on Wednesday - Kremlin

We Need to Go Deeper: Earth Has One More Layer, And It's Leviathan Iron Core, Study Says

Our planet Earth has five major layers instead of four, a major new study has claimed. There is a ball of iron possibly 400 miles (644 kilometers) wide, lodged deep within Earth’s metallic core, according to the latest research, carried out by scientists in Australia.

In plain terms, Earth is rather like an onion, with multiple layers, which huge strides in seismology have allowed scientists to analyze. If we begin at the exterior, these layers are: the crust (where we live), the mantle, the outer core, and the inner core. Each of the layers has its specific properties, composition, and characteristics, with the latter affecting key processes taking place on Earth. There had been speculation regarding the existence of an additional layer as far back as 20 years ago, which the new study by the geoscientists claims to have confirmed.

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Bad Omens: Drought Alert Looms Over Italy as Venice Canals Run Dry

Gondolas, water taxis and ambulances are standing idle, tied up along some of Venice’s iconic canals because of severe low tide, with scientists sending out dire warnings.

We have all become accustomed to the sight of Italy’s famous tourist venue, the city of Venice, inundated, with visitors trudging through flooded St. Mark's square in wellies. But now there are worries that last July's drought - the worst in decades that prompted the government to declare a state of emergency in the north of Italy - will be repeated this summer.

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❗️Russia to keep complying with New START caps on number of nuclear carriers, exchange of information will continue - MoD

❗️LIVE NOW: Vladimir Putin meets China's top diplomat Wang Yi in Moscow
Join the live stream here or follow this link to Sputnik’s website

❗️Russia’s MoD briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️The Russian Army continues its successful offensive in the Donetsk direction;

▪️Ukrainian losses in the Krasny Liman direction amounted to more than 135 servicemen;

▪️Russian troops eliminated over 40 servicemen in the Kupyansk direction;

▪️Ukrainian losses in the Donetsk direction amounted to 250 people killed and wounded;

▪️Russian air defenses destroyed nine HIMARS rockets and 10 UAVs;

▪️Russian forces destroyed a Ukrainian ammunition depot in the DPR;

▪️Russian troops eliminated up to 65 Ukrainian servicemen in the South Donetsk direction.

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⚡️ US Embassy in London reportedly evacuated, building cordoned off

📹 ▶️ First footage of the meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the head of Chinese diplomacy Wang Yi

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Catch our Fault Lines show, where we provide updates and analysis on all the most vital stories! Here's our line-up for today:

🔺To kick things off, we’ll be discussing Biden's speech in Poland, as well as a potential Chinese peace plan
🔺Next, we’ll touch upon the Ohio disaster and its political implications
🔺Finally, we’ll speak about a gold case opened against the FBI

More trending stories coming your way! Tune in to Radio Sputnik at 7am EST|4am PST|1pm CET via the website or app!

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❗️Key points of Russian President Putin’s speech during meeting with China's top diplomat Wang Yi:

▪️Cooperation between Russia and China is very important for stabilizing the international situation;

▪️Russian-Chinese relations are developing as planned, reaching new milestones;

▪️Trade turnover between Russia and China will reach $200 billion by 2024;

▪️President Putin conveys best wishes to Xi Jinping, says Russia looking forward to Chinese president's visit to Russia.

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❗️Moscow has provided security guarantees for Biden's visit to Kiev, otherwise it would not have taken place, says Russian diplomat

🗣️“Putin's suspending a Russian participation in the last remaining arms control treaty between our two nations. And anybody who doesn't understand how serious this is probably doesn't appreciate life”, Scott Ritter, a former UN weapons inspector speaking about the New START suspension

💬”We need to pray that the United States gets over its Ukraine fixation and gets into “How do we stop the world from dying in a nuclear holocaust to which we will be singularly responsible for initiating”, he added.

🎧Listen to more of Ritter’s analysis in our podcast The Critical Hour: Russia Suspends START Cooperation; Anti-War Rally in DC; China's Push for Peace

❗️Latest statements from Russia’s Foreign Ministry after Sergey Lavrov’s meeting with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi:

▪️Lavrov discussed Ukrainian crisis with Wang Yi, Moscow is grateful to Beijing for balanced approach to it;

▪️Russia welcomes China's readiness to play a positive role in settling the Ukrainian crisis;

▪️Russia and China have similar visions of resolving the pressing international issues.

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🇷🇺📹 "Right now a battle is taking place on our historical frontiers for our people": Highlight of Vladimir Putin's speech at Russia's Luzhniki Stadium during a Defender of the Fatherland Day event

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Scott Ritter, a former UN weapons inspector discussing the New START suspension, talks about the reasons for and the meaning of the New START suspension:

💬“We withdrew from Open skies, and now we're cheating on the last remaining treaty, new START. We're not allowing Russian inspectors to come and inspect us while demanding that we go inspect Russia. And so the Russians have suspended this. This is all a power play by the United States to further what we believe to be our strategic advantage over Russia. The problem is Russia is no longer a defeated, compliant state. The Russians have nuclear superiority over us today. Their missiles are better than anything we have. We don't have a missile defense system worthy of the name. And so if there was a nuclear conflict, we would be annihilated.”

🎧Listen to more of Ritter’s analysis in our podcast The Critical Hour: Russia Suspends START Cooperation; Anti-War Rally in DC; China's Push for Peace

❗️Joe Biden calls Vladimir Putin’s decision to suspend participation in the New START Treaty a "big mistake."

On February 21, Vladimir Putin said that the growing calls from the US and NATO to allow on-the-ground inspections of Russian nuclear sites are absurd, because NATO specialists modernized and armed drones that were used by Ukraine to attack the Engels Air Base, home to part of the airborne contingent of Russia's nuclear triad. "And now they want to inspect our defense facilities. In the current conditions and today's confrontation, this simply sounds like some kind of nonsense," he added.

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❗️Latest statements of China’s Wang Yi after meetings with Russian FM Lavrov and Vladimir Putin:

▪️Relations between Russia and China are not directed against third parties, they do not tolerate interference and will not accept threats;

▪️China and Russia are ready to play a constructive role to promote peace and development worldwide;

▪️China is ready to deepen mutual political trust and strategic coordination with Russia, and protect the legal interests of the two countries.

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