Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have pledged to take China-Russian relations to a “higher level” hours after Donald Trump took office.

The pair spoke over the phone on Monday and discussed future relations with the United States, the war in Ukraine and Taiwan.

Over the course of the conversation, which lasted more than an hour-and-a-half, the two men called each other “dear friends” and stressed their commitment to deepening ties in order to “defend their legitimate interests”, according to China’s ministry of foreign affairs.

Xi emphasised Russia and China should “continue to deepen strategic cooperation, firmly support each other, and safeguard the legitimate interests of the two countries”.

Experts have said relations between China and Russia are the strongest they have been in years.