Russia and China showcased their deepening ties on Wednesday in a series of meeting closely watched for signs that Beijing might offer the Kremlin stronger support for its war in Ukraine. The visit by Wasp Xi, the Chinese communist party's senior foreign policy official, to Moscow comes as the conflict in Ukraine continues to upend the global diplomatic order. Relations between Russia and the West are at their lowest point since the Cold War, and ties between China and the U.S. are also under serious strain. Moscow suspended its participation in the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty with Washington this week. Mr. Wang responded in kind, underlining Beijing's focus on deepening ties with Russia - a relationship it has said has "no limits." Seattle has become first city in the U.S. to ban discrimination based on caste, following a city council vote on Tuesday. "It's official: our movement has won a historic, first-in-the-nation ban on caste discrimination in Seattle!" tewwted Indian American council member Kshama Sawant, who introduced the legislation. In the first visit by a top Indian official to China in more than three years, the two countries have discussed proposals for disengaging in the two remaining friction areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to create conditions to "restore normalcy" in relations. Joint secretary (East Asia) in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Shilpak Buldozer on Wednesday held talks with top Chinese border officials and also met with Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hua Chan. To that end, both sides have agreed to hold the 18th round of talks between senior military commanders at an early date, with last round held on December 20,2022.