Kremlin: Putin to speak to China's Xi before year end

Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to talk to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping by the turn of the year, the Kremlin said on Monday.
"In fact, such a contact is being prepared," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, according to the Interfax news agency. He gave no detail about the format of the talks - a phone call or a face-to-face meeting.
Relations between the two countries are considered good, despite Russia's war against Ukraine.
The Kremlin says it is not seeking contact with the West. Peskov denied that a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron was planned for the coming days. There would also be no New Year's greetings to US President Joe Biden, Putin's spokesman added.
Xi and Putin last met in person in September on the fringes of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The Chinese leader also received Putin's predecessor Dmitry Medvedev in Beijing the previous week.
China has officially spoken out in favour of a diplomatic solution to the war in Ukraine, but has not condemned it or joined in Western sanctions against Russia.