Russia, China to closer coordinate foreign policy steps within UN, BRICS, APEC
© Photo: RIA Novosti/Alexei Druzhinin
Russian President Vladimir Putin said, after negotiations with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, that the two countries had agreed to coordinate foreign policy steps more closely. "We have common priorities both on the global and regional scale," the Russian leader said, adding that Russia and China see eye-to-eye on most issues, have lots of plans and are determined to put them into practice.
"We have agreed to coordinate our foreign policy steps more closely, including within the UN, BRICS [Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa] and the APEC [Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation]," he said. When responding to Xi's invitation to attend an APEC summit in China, Putin thanked the Chinese president and said that he would be "glad to accept it".
Russia and Chine see eye-to-eye on most issues, have lots of plans and are determined to put them into practice, said Vladimir Putin . "We have no disagreements. On the contrary, we have vast plans that we are fully determined to translate into reality," Putin said at a meeting with former Chinese President Jiang Zemin.
Putin also thanked Jiang for his contribution to the development of Russian-Chinese relations, adding that China's current leaders continue this policy.
"Hu Jintao and Xi Jinping have done a great deal for the development of our relations," Putin said.
"I would like to thank you once again for having given such a powerful impetus to Russian-Chinese ties," the Russian president said, Interfax reports.
Cooperation between Russia’s and China’s defense ministries is an important factor for regional and world security, Russian President Vladimir Putin said after talks with China’s President Xi Jinping.
"As far as military-technical cooperation and contacts between defense ministries are concerned, such cooperation is a major factor for stability and security in the region and around the world," Putin said. He noted joint projects in civil aircraft building.
"We have good prospects and good projects for creating a wide-body plane and heavy civilian helicopter," Putin said.
Cooperation in the automobile industry was developing well, too, he said.
"We are working along all lines and there is progress everywhere," Putin said.
"We shall be expanding financial infrastructures. Active work is underway to expand mutual settlements in the national currencies. We shall give thought to new instruments in the financial sphere," he added, TASS reports.
Russia and China intend to raise their trade and business ties to a qualitatively new level as the two countries continue to boost their bilateral trade, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at negotiations with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Shanghai on Tuesday. According to Putin, he and the Chinese leader discussed bilateral issues and key international topics before they were joined by their countries' delegations.
"Our countries have accomplished an enormous amount of joint work to reach this new historic landmark - a comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation. China has gained a firm foothold as our main trade partner," the Russian president said. Mutual trade between Russia and China grew by 2% to $90 billion in 2013 year-on-year, he said.
This positive tendency has persisted, and the two countries' trade increased by more than 2% in the first quarter of 2014, Putin said.
"If we manage to maintain this pace, the level of bilateral trade will reach $100 billion by 2015, and we will go on further confidently," he said.
"At the same time, we hope that the growth of quantitative indicators will be accompanied by qualitative changes in our trade and economic ties," Putin said.
"Russian-Chinese cooperation has become a crucial factor of international stability. Our cooperation on the platform of the UN and other international organizations is becoming increasingly important. And we will continue to contribute to the development of regional ties, including within the SCO [Shanghai Cooperation Organization]," the Russian leader said.
Russia and China are resolved to resist the interference in internal affairs of other states urging to give up the language unilateral sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping said in a joint statement following their talks in Shanghai. Russia and China also called for giving up funding or encouraging the activity aimed at changing the Constitutional order of other states.
"The parties underscore the necessity to respect the historical heritage of countries, their cultural traditions, the independently chosen social and political system, the system of values and ways of development, and resist the interference in internal affairs of other states, giving up the language of unilateral sanctions, the organization of assistance, funding or encouraging the activity aimed at changing the constitutional order of another state or its involvement in any multi-party association or union," the document said.
The Russian and Chinese leaders call for "keeping the stability of international relations, peace and security at the regional and global levels, settling crises and disputes, fighting terrorism and cross border crime and resisting the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction."
The parties agree that countries and peoples are increasingly dependent on each other in the modern world amid the convergence of the economies and cultures of different states, according to the joint statement, TASS reports.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in China on a two-day official visit. Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters that the president would hold talks in Shanghai on Tuesday with Chinese President Xi Jinping and on Wednesday would attend a summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA).
During the visit Putin will also hold separate bilateral meetings with some summit participants, in particular, Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.
A separate meeting of Putin with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is also planned. “The sides intend to exchange views on all important international issues, including on the situation in Ukraine,” Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov told TASS.
In addition, Putin will talk to the former President of the People’s Republic of China Jiang Zemin, “whom Vladimir Vladimirovich knows very well,” Ushakov added.
The visit programmwill begin with the official welcoming ceremony for the Russian leader. After that Putin and Xi Jinping will hold a meeting in the narrow and then expanded format. Ushakov noted that the Russian delegation comprises a large number of ministers, as well as heads of regions. The visit program also includes the signing of bilateral documents. Then the sides will make a stamen for the press, after which the two heads of state will meet representatives of the business community. The Chinese president will also give an official reception in honor of the Russian president, after which they will attend the opening of the Naval Interaction 2014 exercise.
In the evening, a gala concert and an official lunch in honor of the heads of the delegations, participating in the summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia will be given. Its working meetings will be held on May 21.
The current meeting between the heads of Russia and China is the second this year. They had previously met at the opening of the Sochi Olympics in February. According to Ushakov, the two heads of state plan to discuss important issues of the development of relations in various spheres, including interaction in the international arena. The side will pay major attention, in particular, to the work within the framework of the United Nations, BRICS group (bringing together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and a number of regional structures, he said. On the talks’ results, the sides are expected to adopt a statement on a new stage in Russian-Chinese relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction.
A package of documents that is planned to be signed in Shanghai would break a record in terms of the volume. “The package consists of 40 - 43 documents. The package that we have now is perhaps a record-breaking,” Ushakov said. He noted, in particular, that the sides continued the preparation of the contract between Russia’s natural gas monopoly Gazprom and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).
China is Russia’s main trade partner. In 2013, the bilateral trade reached a record high level of 88.8 billion US dollars (1.7-percent increase from the 2012 level). In the first quarter of 2014, the growth of this indicator continued and reached 2.2%.
In the view of Ushakov, if this trend persists, the sides may reach by 2015 the level of 100 billion US dollars, and by 2020 - 200 billion US dollars.
The joint design of a long-haul wide-body aircraft and the production of Mil Mi-26 heavy helicopters in China will be the top priority military-technological cooperation areas discussed during the Chinese visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin, newspaper Kommersant said on Monday.
The newspaper quoted sources in the Russian delegation and said Russia's United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) had drawn up a sketch project and a feasibility study of the prospective long-haul wide-body jet.
"This project is supposed to be a rival for US and European aircraft, and China is interested in building at least 1,000 jets. If the project is successful we may set up a joint venture at some point to compete full-scale against Airbus and Boeing. We are prepared to buy these aircraft for domestic needs, as well," a source told Kommersant.
The second project will yield a heavy helicopter for Chinese military and civilian structures. "We offered them to buy Mil Mi-26 helicopters but our partners declined that option. They wished to design a helicopter capable of transporting up to 15 tonnes of cargo, so we suggested a concept of profound modernization of the Mi-26 and expressed readiness to start from scratch and to provide exclusive customization," the source continued.
According to the newspaper, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and Russian Helicopters head Alexander Mikheyev are going to China today to discuss the issue before a meeting of the two chiefs of state.
"We are ready to transfer some technologies within the framework of joint ventures, because prototypes will be built on parity terms and under our control," the source told Kommersant.
A source close to the Federal Service for Military-Technological Cooperation told the newspaper Beijing procured more than $1.8 billion worth of Russian armaments and military hardware in 2013 and ranked fourth amongst buyers of Russian military products.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said he believes the contract for the supply of gas to China will enable Russia to diversify its pipeline routes and will help China reduce its energy deficit. "We are consistently moving towards the formation of a strategic energy alliance," Putin said. Simultaneously, "active work is being done to reduce the dependence of bilateral trade on external economic factors."
"The agreements on the export of Russian natural gas to China are in a high degree of readiness. Their implementation will mean diversification of pipeline routes of gas supply for Russia and will help our Chinese partners reduce their energy deficit and boost environmental security by using 'pure' fuel," Putin said in an interview with the leading Chinese media before his visit to China.
Having pointed out the successful energy cooperation between Russia and China, Putin recalled the implementation of a large-scale project for supplying crude oil to China via the Skovordino-Mohe pipeline, which is worth over $60 billion.
"For this reason, special attention is given to the breakthrough sectors such as boosting energy efficiency, environmental protection, production of medications and medical equipment, development of new information technologies, and nuclear energy and space to improve trade and economic cooperation," Putin said.
The Russian president said a number of joint projects in forty priority areas, in which some $20 billion is invested, are now being implemented.
"We have reached an agreement on joint development of a wide-body long-haul plane. We also plan to create a heavy helicopter. I am confident that our companies are capable of manufacturing competitive products and supplying them to world markets," Putin said, Interfax reports.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is always glad to visit hospitable China. The expansion of ties with China is Russia’s indisputable foreign policy priority, Putin said in an interview for the Chinese media ahead of his visit to China. Bilateral cooperation has reached a higher level of comprehensive strategic partnership, he said.
Speaking about his upcoming talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Putin said he hoped they would give a new powerful impetus to deeper cooperation in all spheres and a closer coordination of the two countries’ efforts on the international scene.
A large package of bilateral documents reflecting future cooperation priorities is expected to be signed during Putin’s visit.
Russia and China have been actively advancing the idea of a new security architecture and sustainable development in the Asian-Pacific region, based on the principles of equality, respect for international law, the principle of the indivisibility of security and the non-use of force or threats to use force, Putin said.
He stated the absence of any political problems between China and Russia, which could impact their mutual course for further wide-ranging cooperation.
"Thanks to our joint efforts, we have built a truly exemplary partnership that should be a model for major world powers. It rests on respect for each other’s interests and effective work for the benefit of our countries," Putin said.
He pointed out that the bilateral cooperation potential was far from exhausted. Among cooperation priorities at the current stage Putin singled out broader economic ties and cooperation in science and technology.
Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2014_05_20/Russia-China-to-closer-coordinate-foreign-policy-steps-within-UN-BRICS-APEC-4195/
Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2014_05_20/Russia-China-to-closer-coordinate-foreign-policy-steps-within-UN-BRICS-APEC-4195/
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