Photo: VCG
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi talked with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov via phone on Thursday, when Wang informed the Russian side about the just-finished 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and both sides vowed to promote the development of bilateral ties and to provide more stability to the world.
According to the statement released by China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Wang said in the phone talk that the 20th CPC National Congress was a congress with unity and victory, and also a congress that eyed the future. Comrade Xi Jinping has been unanimously elected as General Secretary of the 20th CPC Central Committee, and this has thoroughly reflected the common will shared by the whole Party and the people of the whole nation.
Wang noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a letter of congratulation to General Secretary Xi after the 20th CPC National Congress, and this showed the high-level mutual trust and firm mutual support between the two countries. China will firmly support the Russian side, with the leadership of President Putin, to unify Russian people to overcome difficulties and interruptions, to realize the strategic goal of development, and to further reinforce the status of Russia as a major power.
"China and Russia have legitimate rights to realize their own development and revitalization, which is in line with the trend of the times. Any attempt to stop China and Russia from marching forward is doomed to fail," Wang said. China and Russia will deepen exchanges at all levels, and promote China-Russia relations and cooperation in all areas to a higher level, to better benefit the peoples of the two countries, and to bring more stability to the world facing turbulence, said the Chinese foreign minister.
Chinese analysts said the remarks by Wang are actually aimed at the US document titled "National Security Strategy" released by the White House earlier this month, which vows to "out-compete China and constrain Russia."
The US document showed great hostility toward China and Russia's legitimate development and security concerns, as it stated that "Russia and the PRC (People's Republic of China) pose different challenges. Russia poses an immediate threat to the free and open international system, recklessly flouting the basic laws of the international order today… The PRC, by contrast, is the only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to advance that objective."
In order to maintain its unjustified hegemony, the US is openly challenging the development of China and Russia, and it attaches great importance to the next decade to contain these two non-Western major powers, so it is natural that China and Russia will keep standing closer with each other and provide more mutual support to each other to withstand the pressure from the US together, said Chinese experts.
Lavrov hailed the success of the 20th CPC National Congress, and congratulated Xi on the election as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee. The Russian foreign minister said the 20th CPC National Congress is an event with global significance and will guide China toward its goal of national rejuvenation.
Russia is willing to strengthen engagement with China at all levels, to deepen multilateral cooperation, and to jointly safeguard the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the peace and stability of the world, Lavrov said in the phone call.
The two sides also exchanged views over the Ukraine crisis and other international and regional issues of shared concern, according to the statement released by the Chinese foreign ministry.