Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, says that Moscow could help make up energy shortages in China amid the ongoing US blockade on Iranian ports.

“Russia can undoubtedly make up for the resource deficit that has emerged, both for the People’s Republic of China and for all countries willing to work with us in a fair and mutually beneficial manner,” Lavrov told reporters in Beijing, after meeting China’s President Xi Jinping.

Lavrov said relations between Russia and China “remain unshakeable in the face of all storms” and the ties between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Xi contribute to their countries’ “high degree of resilience in the face of the shocks that have shaken the world”.

As we’ve been reporting, China is the biggest buyer of Iran’s oil and the US has pledged that Beijing will not be able to buy Iranian oil amid the continuing blockade.