Senior US and Chinese officials are preparing to meet on Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as worries grow that the Asian superpower will help Russia evade unprecedented and punishing sanctions. The talks come as Russian forces push even further west.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will meet with China's top diplomat Yang Jiechi. This will be the first time senior officials talk face-to-face since Russia's invasion began.

China has objected to the widespread sanctions that countries across the world have imposed on Russia.

Sullivan earlier told US media that Beijing will "absolutely" face consequences if it goes too far in providing economic or material support to Russia.

The Deputy Secretary of State told FOX NEWS SUNDAY the US is pressuring Russian President Vladimir Putin for a ceasefire.

Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine allowed for the creation of humanitarian corridors to allow civilians to escape. But both sides say they are hoping for a breakthrough.

US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said, "That pressure is beginning to have some effect. We are seeing some signs of a willingness to have real, serious negotiations, but I have to say it appears that Vladimir Putin is intent on destroying Ukraine. We need to help the Ukrainians in every way we can."

The United States has been unwavering in its promise to defend NATO allies.

On Sunday, fighting got closer to member Poland than ever before. Russian forces launched airstrikes on a Ukrainian military facility near the border.

At least 35 people were reportedly killed and more than 130 were injured.

The Ukrainian Defense Minister called it a "new terrorist attack on peace and security near the EU-NATO border."

Russia's defense ministry said it killed foreign mercenaries, and pledged to continue eliminating that threat.

The attack came the same day that Kyiv regional police reported the shooting of an American journalist.

Brent Renaud was reportedly killed when Russian troops opened fire on his car outside the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says the Russian military has kidnapped another mayor in southern Ukraine. That is just two days after the government announced the taking of another mayor in the same region. It triggered massive protests. The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell weighed in, calling the kidnappings "yet another attack on democratic institutions in Ukraine."

Meanwhile, the steady flow of refugees out of Ukraine continues. The United Nations human rights office says that, as of Saturday, nearly 2.7 million Ukrainians have fled to other countries.

Nearly 60 percent of those people have crossed into Poland. It says others have made their way to Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova and Romania, and over 100,000 have entered Russia.