China touts 'friendship' with Russia: 'Most important strategic partner'

The Chinese Foreign Minister called Russia the “most important strategic partner” to China.

Gutted cars following a night air raid in the village of Bushiv, 40 kilometers west of Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, March 4, 2022. Russia's war on Ukraine is now in its ninth day and Russian forces have shelled Europe's largest nuclear power plant, sparking a fire there that was extinguished overnight. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) (AP) Natali Sevriukova reacts next to her house following a rocket attack the city of Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)  (AP) Firefighters work to extinguish a fire at a damaged logistic center after shelling in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday, March 3, 2022. Russian forces have escalated their attacks on crowded cities in what Ukraine's leader called a blatant campaign of terror.  (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

"The friendship between the two peoples is iron clad," he said, and noted that Chinese ties to Russia constitute "one of the most crucial bilateral relationships in the world."