Russia, China commit to strengthening ties

Beijing and Moscow exchanged ideas on stepping up strategic coordination, reinforced their mutual trust and mapped out the next steps for their dialogues as the 18th round of China-Russia strategic security consultation was taking place in Moscow on Tuesday.

Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, co-chaired the talks with Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation.

"The two sides agreed to hold China-Russia strategic stability consultations at an appropriate time to strengthen cooperation in law enforcement security, non-proliferation, and global governance of emerging science and technology," said a statement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

The two sides will also continue to strengthen collaboration under multilateral frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS, it added.

Wang called the China-Russia strategic security consultation mechanism "an important component of the two countries' comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in the new era".

He noted that the mechanism "reflects the depth of China-Russia political mutual trust and the width of their strategic cooperation".

Since the establishment of the mechanism, the two sides have maintained close communication and positive interaction, effectively defended their common interests, and contributed wisdom and strength to global strategic stability as well as the resolution of regional hotspot issues, Wang said.

He emphasized that the two sides have firmly supported each other on issues related to their own core interests.

Wang said China is willing to work with the Russian side to take the important consensus reached by the two heads of state as their fundamental guideline, further tap into the mechanism, and make greater contributions to safeguarding the national security of the two countries and promoting world peace and stability.

Patrushev said that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, Russia-China relations have been developing steadily this year, with practical cooperation advancing in an orderly manner, and the two sides have always respected and supported each other.

He said Russia and China "are not subject to external influence and interference".

The Russian side firmly supports China's legitimate position on Taiwan, Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong, and it opposes interference by the West in China's internal affairs, he added.

He said the Russian side is willing to jointly promote stability and development in the Asia-Pacific region and the world at large.