Chinese, Russian presidents vow to enhance comprehensive strategic cooperation
Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, held talks here Friday and vowed to enhance their countries' comprehensive strategic cooperation.
During their meeting in the Kremlin, Putin extended his warm welcome to Xi, and said the fact that Xi selected Russia as the first foreign country to visit after assuming presidency testifies to the great importance both sides attach to the development of their relations as well as the special and strategic nature of the relationship.
Describing the visit as one of historic significance, Putin said he is confident that the trip will bear rich fruit and give a strong boost to the development of the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between Russia and China.
Xi stressed that China and Russia are each other's major and most important strategic cooperative partners, and both accord priority to deepening their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in their overall diplomatic agenda and foreign policy.
In face of the profoundly complex international situation and the still grave global economic environment, the two sides should work together more closely to enhance their comprehensive strategic cooperation, said the Chinese president.
China and Russia, he proposed, should deepen mutual political support, steadfastly backing each other's efforts to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, each other's independent choice of development paths and each other's cause of national rejuvenation.
The two sides should also expand practical cooperation, translate the advantage of their high-level political ties into tangible results and thus achieve common development, Xi added.
Meanwhile, he continued, Beijing and Moscow should strengthen coordination and cooperation on global and regional issues so as to safeguard the two countries' common strategic security.
The collaboration on the world stage should also aim at promoting world peace, stability and prosperity by defending the principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations, the post-World War II international order as well as international justice and fairness, he said.
Expressing his full agreement with Xi's comments on bilateral relations, Putin said the two countries hold similar stances on many major issues and enjoy extensive common interests and bright cooperation prospects.
Facts have proved that the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership between Russia and China not only serves the interests of both peoples, but has become an important positive component of today's international relations, he added.
Russia, said Putin, is willing to reinforce its strategic cooperation with China.
As regards their countries' practical cooperation, the two leaders had in-depth discussions and agreed that the time and conditions are ripe for the two sides to carry out large-scale economic cooperation.
The two sides vowed to make full use of their various cooperation mechanisms, and invigorate collaboration on large joint projects of strategic significance, such as the development of heavy helicopters and long-haul wide-body passenger airplanes.
The two leaders also pledged to further improve the structure of bilateral trade and strive to achieve in advance the goal of bringing bilateral trade to 100 billion US dollars by 2015.
Besides, Xi and Putin agreed to boost their countries' cooperation in such areas as energy, transportation, environmental protection, youth, education and medicine.
In addition, the two sides promised to cooperate more closely on major global and regional issues under such frameworks as the UN, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS and safeguard world peace and development.
The two countries also ratified the 2013-2016 implementation guidelines of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation.
After the talks, the two leaders signed a joint statement on deepening the bilateral comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, and witnessed the signing of a series of cooperation documents.
Prior to the meeting, Putin hosted a welcoming ceremony in honor of Xi in the Kremlin.