Chinese president meets Russian Federation Council speaker

BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko in Beijing on Tuesday, calling for closer legislative cooperation between the two countries.

Xi said the overall strategic partnership of coordination between China and Russia has entered a new historic stage, referencing three meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin this year in Shanghai, Fortaleza and Dushanbe.

The two countries will work together to celebrate the 70th anniversary of ending of World War II next year, he said, adding legislature of the two countries can make joint efforts in multilateral parliamentary organizations to safeguard the outcomes of the war as well as the post-war international order.

Matviyenko, chairwoman of the upper house of the Russian parliament, was in Beijing to co-chair the 8th meeting of a cooperation committee between China's National People's Congress (NPC) and the Russian Federation Council, with Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.

Xi said he and Putin have agreed on expanding and enhancing the practical cooperation between the two countries, calling on the Russian Federation Council to play an active role in overseeing the implementation of the deals signed, and providing legal guarantee for projects in discussion, and more convenience for interactions between companies and people of the two countries.

Xi also asked Matviyenko to convey his greetings to Putin, noting he looks forward to the Russian president's attendance to the 2014 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting in November.

Matviyenko said the Russia-China partnership stands at a unprecedented height with closer communication between the presidents of the two countries.

The Russian Federation Council stands ready to work together with the NPC to carry out the consensus reached between the leaders and promote cooperation at local levels and people-to-people exchanges to benefit the two nations and their people, she added.