Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met in Beijing on the morning of May 20.

The two leaders held the first part of their talks in a restricted format at the Great Hall of the People on Tiananmen Square, a session that lasted about an hour and a half, Russian media reported. Their delegations then continued in an expanded format.

At the meeting, Xi Jinping said the international situation remained unstable and turbulent, with “unilateralism and hegemonism” on the rise, according to the Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

China and Russia must “promote the development and rejuvenation” of both countries and “strive to make the global governance system more just and equitable,” he said.

Putin said “the comprehensive partnership between Moscow and Beijing has become a model for interstate relations in a new era” and that the two countries’ relationship “has withstood the test of strength more than once.”

Less than a week ago, on May 14, Xi Jinping held talks in Beijing with U.S. President Donald Trump. During the meeting, according to reports from the Financial Times, the Chinese leader said that Putin could ultimately regret the invasion of Russian troops into Ukraine. China’s Foreign Ministry called the Financial Times publication “pure fabrication.”