WASHINGTON, October 31. /TASS/. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held a telephone conversation discussing bilateral issues as well as the Ukrainian conflict settlement, the US Department of State said in a statement citing its spokesperson Ned Price.
"Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with PRC State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi," the statement quoted Price as saying.
"The Secretary discussed the need to maintain open lines of communication and responsibly manage the US-PRC relationship," the statement reads adding that Russia’s special military operation had been also discussed between the US and Chinese officials because of "the threats it poses to global security and economic stability."
According to the statement, both diplomats also noted "the deteriorating humanitarian and security situation in Haiti and the need for continued coordinated action in support of the Haitian people."
Russia’s special military operation
The situation along the line of engagement in Donbass escalated on February 17. The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) reported the most massive bombardments by the Ukrainian military back then, which damaged civilian infrastructure and caused civilian casualties.
On February 21, President Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow was recognizing the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. Russia signed agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with their leaders. Moscow recognized the Donbass republics in accordance with the DPR and LPR constitutions within the boundaries of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions as of the beginning of 2014.
Russian President Putin announced on February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics for assistance he had decided to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine. The DPR and the LPR launched an operation to liberate their territories under Kiev’s control.
From September 23 to September 27, the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Lugansk People’s Republic as well as the Kherson Region and the Zaporozhye Region held a referendum where the majority of voters opted to join Russia.
On September 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the heads of the DPR and the LPR, the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions signed treaties on their accession to Russia. Later, the State Duma and the Federation Council (the lower and upper houses of Russia’s parliament) approved laws on ratifying these treaties, as well as federal constitutional laws on the accession of the four regions to Russia.