Xi meets Putin, underlines strategic cooperation

Vice President Xi Jinping underlined the necessity for China and Russia to strengthen their strategic cooperation while meeting with visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing on Wednesday.

Xi said it is necessary to safeguard the two neighbors' common interests against the backdrop of a world that has witnessed unprecedented and profound changes.

Putin said he is in full agreement with Xi's view on Russia-China relations. Russia and China should further strengthen pragmatic cooperation in various sectors that reflect the strategic level of Russia-China relations, he said.

Russia highly values its relations with China and is confident about the development of Russia-China relations, said Putin, who kicked off his three-day China visit on Tuesday, his first to Asia since starting his third term last month.

Putin is scheduled to attend the 12th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization running from Wednesday to Thursday in Beijing.

On Tuesday, Putin and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao held two-hour-long talks, during which they agreed on boosting the comprehensive partnership of strategic coordination between the two countries and reaffirmed the commitment to safeguarding world peace, security and stability.

China is willing to work with Russia to complete the new tasks set forward by the heads of states of both countries, and consolidate the basis of Sino-Russia relations and improve bilateral relations, Xi noted.

As two important emerging economies, both China and Russia have emphasized economic development as a priority, he said.

Both countries are undergoing economic restructuring and committed to innovation-driven development and opening up, which provide important new opportunities for the two countries to carry out pragmatic cooperation, Xi said.

Xi congratulated Putin on his victory in the Russian presidential election. Putin's visit, about a month after his inauguration, shows the importance both Russia and the Russian president attach to Sino-Russia relations, Xi said.

Xi said high-level exchanges have been a trait of Sino-Russia relations, which have demonstrated mutual political trust between the two countries and served to guarantee the advancement of bilateral relations and cooperation in various sectors.

It is hoped that both countries would make use of their respective advantages to strengthen pragmatic cooperation so as to bring their economic interests more closely together, Xi said.