Photo: Xinhua
Chinese President Xi Jinping held large-group talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is in China on a state visit, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Thursday. Analysts from both countries said the visit will reinforce and further promote the bilateral strategic ties with high level mutual-trust and broad common interests.
During the meeting, Xi again extended a warm welcome to Putin for his state visit to China. He pointed out that this is President Putin's first foreign visit after he began his new term as the president. This fully demonstrates the great importance President Putin himself and the Russian government attach to developing China-Russia relations. China highly appreciates this.
Xi said this year marks the 75th anniversary of the China-Russia diplomatic relations. It is an important milestone year in the history of China-Russia relations. Over the past 75 years, China and Russia together have found a new path for major countries and neighboring countries to treat each other with respect and pursue amity and mutually beneficial cooperation.
With the concerted efforts of the two sides, China-Russia relations have been moving forward steadily, with enhanced comprehensive strategic coordination and further cooperation on economy and trade, investment, energy, people-to-people exchanges, at the subnational level and in other fields. This has made positive contributions to maintaining global strategic stability and promoting greater democracy in international relations, Xi remarked.
Both China and Russia are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and major emerging markets. It is the shared strategic choice of both countries to deepen strategic coordination, expand mutually beneficial cooperation and follow the general historical trend of multipolarity in the world and economic globalization.
Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Thursday that China and Russia are providing back-to-back mutual support to each other amid the turbulence that the world is experiencing. He pointed out that this doesn't mean they are building an alliance to target anyone, but are providing strategic support to serve the fundamental interests of not only the two peoples but also the fairness and justice of the world, to jointly withstand hegemony and unilateralism, and promote multilateralism.
"The China-Russia strategic partnership has set an example for successful relations between major powers that can withstand the turbulence of the world, and it's also the key to maintaining the strategic balance of international relations," Li noted.
According to TASS, Putin said at the meeting with Xi that "It is of fundamental importance that relations between Russia and China are not opportunistic and are not directed against anyone. Our cooperation in world affairs today serves as one of the main stabilizing factors in the international arena."
More and more cooperation
According to the Xinhua News Agency, Xi and Putin on Thursday signed and issued a joint statement on deepening China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries. The two leaders also attended the signing ceremony of cooperation documents in Beijing on Thursday.
Cui Heng, a scholar from the Shanghai-based China National Institute for SCO International Exchange and Judicial Cooperation, told the Global Times on Thursday that Putin has brought a massive delegation with him that includes senior officials in charge of fields such as energy, economy and finance, as well as heads of giant companies in heavy industry and mining.
"This means the cooperation documents between the two sides will cover many areas, which, it is believed, will further promote bilateral relations to a higher level," Cui noted.
Alexey Maslov, director of the Institute of Asian and African Studies of Moscow State University, told the Global Times in an exclusive interview recently that Russia's economy realized a 3.6 percent GDP increase in 2023, and will continue to grow this year thanks to the cooperation with China and other countries.
"Recently, Russia invested in a lot of innovative productions, including electronics and microprocessors. Russia started to cooperate with, for example, China in electric car production and science and technology. It also started to produce much more of its own agricultural products. Right now, Russia not only produces these agricultural products by itself, but also exports these products more, for example, to China," he said.
Maslov said, "What Russia really needs right now is much more new technologies. And in this area, we have a lot of problems, including the lack of highly qualified personnel. And that's why Russia started to develop its Far Eastern region, where Russia established new centers for technological development."
The eighth China-Russia Expo is set to take place from May 16 to 21 in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, which borders Russia's Far East region. Trade between the two countries will see new impetus after Putin's China visit, said businesspeople from the two countries.
Vice President of the Russian Export Center Alexey Solodov told the Global Times on Thursday at the expo, "The Chinese market is definitely our largest market. I would say it's the most friendly and a very important one for us. We are doing our best to show that these products are very nice and cost-effective."
President Putin's visit to China will no doubt inject more vitality into bilateral trade cooperation. The foundation of our bilateral trade cooperation is our friendship and I'm sure after this Expo, ties between Russia and China will be stronger, he said.
"I'm confident that the trade cooperation between the two countries will be strengthened," Solodov said.
On international affairs
Xi and Putin jointly met the press in Beijing on Thursday. Xi said to the press that with Russia chairing BRICS this year and China taking over the chairmanship of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization later this year, the two sides will support each other's chairmanship, build a high-quality partnership that is more comprehensive, close, practical and inclusive, and build the unity and strength of the Global South.
China and Russia are committed to fairness and justice as the purpose of relations, and dedicated to the political settlement of hotspots. Cold War mentality still exists, and unilateralism, hegemonism, bloc confrontation and power politics threaten world peace and the security of all countries. The two presidents are of the view that it is urgent to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. UN resolutions must be earnestly implemented and the question of Palestine must be solved on the basis of the two-State solution, Xi said.
The Chinese president said that the two sides believe that a political settlement is the right way forward for the Ukraine crisis. China's position on this issue is consistent and clear, including observing the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, respecting the legitimate security concerns of all parties, and building a new security architecture that is balanced, effective and sustainable. China hopes that peace and stability will return to the European continent at an early date, and stands ready to play a constructive role to this end.
习近平总统和俄罗斯总统普京周四在北京人民大会堂举行了大规模会谈。两国分析人士表示，此次访问将进一步加强和推动双边战略关系，增进高水平互信和广泛共同利益。
在会谈中，习近平再次对普京对中国的国事访问表示热烈欢迎。他指出，这是普京总统在新任期开始后的首次外国访问。这充分体现了普京总统本人和俄罗斯政府对发展中俄关系的高度重视，中国对此表示高度赞赏。
习近平表示，今年是中俄建交75周年。这是中俄关系历史上的一个重要里程碑。在过去的75年里，中俄共同找到了一个新的路径，让大国和邻国相互尊重，追求友好互利合作。
在双方的共同努力下，中俄关系稳步前进，全面战略协作得到加强，经贸、投资、能源、人文交流等领域的合作进一步深化，对维护全球战略稳定和促进国际关系更大民主作出了积极贡献，习近平指出。
中国和俄罗斯都是联合国安理会常任理事国和主要新兴市场。深化战略协作，扩大互利合作，顺应了世界多极化和经济全球化的一般历史趋势，是两国的共同战略选择。
中国外交学院教授李海东周四告诉《环球时报》，在世界动荡局势下，中俄相互支持。他指出，这并不意味着他们建立了一个针对任何人的联盟，而是为了服务于两国人民的根本利益，为了世界的公平与正义，共同抵御霸权主义和单边主义，促进多边主义。
李指出：“中俄战略伙伴关系为大国之间成功的关系树立了榜样，也是维护国际关系战略平衡的关键。”
据塔斯社报道，普京在与习近平会晤时表示：“俄中关系的根本重要性在于，它既不是机会主义的，也不是针对任何人的。我们今天在世界事务中的合作是国际舞台上的主要稳定因素之一。”
更多合作
据新华社报道，周四，习近平和普京签署并发布了一份联合声明，纪念两国建交75周年，深化中俄全面战略协作伙伴关系。两国领导人还出席了在北京举行的合作文件签字仪式。
中国上海合作组织国际交流与司法合作研究院学者崔恒周四告诉《环球时报》，普京带来了一支庞大的代表团，包括负责能源、经济、金融等领域的高级官员，以及重工业和矿业巨头的负责人。
崔指出：“这意味着双方的合作文件将涵盖许多领域，相信这将进一步推动双边关系提升到更高水平。”
莫斯科国立大学亚非学院院长阿列克谢·马斯洛夫最近在接受《环球时报》专访时表示，俄罗斯经济在2023年实现了3.6%的GDP增长，并将在今年继续增长，得益于与中国和其他国家的合作。
他说：“最近，俄罗斯在许多创新领域进行了投资，包括电子和微处理器。俄罗斯开始与中国等国合作生产电动汽车和科技产品。它还开始更多地生产自己的农产品。现在，俄罗斯不仅自己生产这些农产品，还将这些产品更多地出口，例如向中国出口。”
马斯洛夫表示：“俄罗斯现在真正需要的是更多的新技术。在这方面，我们有很多问题，包括缺乏高素质的人才。这就是为什么俄罗斯开始发展远东地区的原因，俄罗斯在那里建立了新的技术发展中心。”
第八届中俄博览会定于5月16日至21日在中国东北黑龙江省哈尔滨举行，该省与俄罗斯远东地区接壤。来自两国的商人表示，在普京访华之后，两国之间的贸易合作将迎来新的动力。
俄罗斯出口中心副主席亚历克谢·索洛多夫周四在博览会上告诉《环球时报》：“中国市场无疑是我们最大的市场。我敢说它是最友好、最重要的市场之一。我们正在尽力展示这些产品非常好且具有成本效益。”
索洛多夫表示，普京总统访华无疑将为双边贸易合作注入更多活力。我们双边贸易合作的基础是友谊，我相信在这次博览会之后，俄罗斯和中国之间的联系将更加牢固。
“我相信两国之间的贸易合作将得到加强，”索洛多夫说道。
在国际事务上
习近平和普京周四在北京共同会见了记者。习近平对媒体表示，随着俄罗斯担任金砖国家主席国和中国即将接任上海合作组织主席国，双方将支持彼此的主席国工作，构建更全面、紧密、务实、包容的高质量伙伴关系，并增进全球南方的团结和力量。
中国和俄罗斯致力于以公正和正义为关系目标，并致力于热点问题的政治解决。冷战思维依然存在，单边主义、霸权主义、集团对抗和强权政治威胁着世界和平和所有国家的安全。两国总统认为，解决巴以冲突是当务之急。必须认真实施联合国决议，并在两国方案的基础上解决巴勒斯坦问题，习近平表示。
习近平表示，双方相信乌克兰危机的政治解决是正确的前进方向。中国在这个问题上的立场是一贯而明确的，包括遵守联合国宪章的宗旨和原则，尊重所有国家的主权和领土完整，尊重各方的合法安全关切，并建立一个平衡、有效和可持续的新安全架构。中国希望欧洲大陆早日恢复和平与稳定，并愿意为此发挥建设性作用。
