President Xi Jinping and Putin sign multiple bilateral projects

World Today

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of a joint press briefing in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, in Beijing, Saturday June 25, 2016. (Greg Baker/Pool via AP)

Chinese President Xi Jinping has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin flew straight from Tashkent after a regional summit that both leaders attended.

CCTV’s Su Yuting reports from Beijing.

President Xi Jinping held a welcoming ceremony for his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

The two leaders had met just two days earlier at the SCO summit in Uzbekistan. This is Putin’s fourth trip to China since President Xi Jinping took office in 2013.

Putin’s visit comes at a symbolic time as this year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination, and the 15th anniversary of the signing of the good-neighborly treaty of friendship and cooperation.

Xi Jinping said China and Russia are major economies and emerging markets, adding that the two sides should integrate the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union for broader regional economic cooperation.

After their talks, the two leaders signed a bilateral joint statement about strengthening global strategic stability and another on promoting the development of information technology and cyber space.

More than 30 deals were signed during Putin’s visit, most of them bilateral investment projects in sectors such as energy, agriculture, transportation, aerospace and military.

They also held a joint press conference.

“As a result of our efforts, the relationship between China and Russia is becoming much closer. Cooperation between the two countries is maintaining good momentum,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Putin said that as a strategic coordination partner, Russia stands ready to extend mutual support and understanding on issues concerning each other’s’ core interests and major concerns.

He called for more cooperation in trade, high technology, security, media, sports and people-to-people exchanges.


James Jatras, deputy director at the American Institute in Ukraine, discusses Russia’s relationship with China.