(AGENPARL) – MOSCOW lun 17 aprile 2023

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Comrade Minister, I am delighted
to see you.

You have arrived in Russia following the visit
to our country by our great friend, my friend President of the People’s
Republic of China, Comrade Xi Jinping. I would like to emphasise once again
that this was a very productive visit. Of course, we discussed
military-to-military cooperation, among other topics.

Our two countries have maintained positive momentum
in expanding our economic, social, cultural and educational ties. We have also
been proactive in our military-to-military relations by regularly sharing
actionable insights and cooperating on defence matters. We also hold joint
military exercises in various theatres of operation, including in the Far East,
Europe, at sea, on land, as well as in the air. I do believe that this constitutes
a major track for strengthening the trust-based strategic relationship between
the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China.

We are glad to see you. I know that you have a packed and quite extensive programme for your visit. I am certain that your
visit will be very effective.

Welcome to Russia.

Minister of National Defence of the People’s
Republic of China Li Shangfu (retranslated): Mr President,

Thank you so much for finding the time to have
this meeting with me. I know that today is a holiday, but still you have found the time to receive me. This is a great honour for me.

First of all, allow me to convey to you the warmest greetings and the best wishes on behalf of Chinese President Xi
Jinping.

In 2017, a military delegation visited Russia
to take part in the meeting of the Commission for Military-Technical
Cooperation, and I was a member of this body at the time. Today, I am back in Russia, which gives me great joy.

As of late, military and military-technical cooperation between Russia
and China is developing very well. This is making a major contribution to maintaining
global and regional security.

I have arrived in Russia today. There are plans to implement your
agreements with President of China Xi Jinping, reached during his March visit
to Moscow. This is my first foreign visit after I became Defence Minister of China. I specially chose Russia, so as to emphasise the special nature and strategic significance of our bilateral relations.

Our countries established bilateral relations over 70 years ago.
Relations between our armed forces are growing stronger with every passing day.
Naturally, the diplomacy of leaders plays a key role here. You set strategic
goals for our development. In addition, your personal friendship with the President of China plays a major role in this process, and everyone in China
knows this.

According to our estimates, you have held 40 meetings with the President
of China. In 2013, he visited Russia for the first time after becoming
President of China. Ten years on, he arrived in Russia again on his first
foreign visit after being re-elected head of the Chinese state. The talks you
held had a very packed agenda and charted the main areas of our future
cooperation.

We have a very strong relationship that goes beyond the Cold War-era
military and political alliances. This relationship hinges on the principles of non-alignment and non-confrontation with third parties, and these principles
are very stable. Under your strategic
leadership and that of the President of China, we are actively developing
cooperation in practical spheres. Our relations have already entered a new era.

For 13 years, China has been Russia’s main trade partner. While
developing our relations, we realise the tremendous responsibility assumed by our states, especially in light of the fact that we are now seeing the most
profound changes of the past 100 years. We are standing shoulder to shoulder
and working to improve the wellbeing of our peoples. We are also mindful of the fact that the global economy is recovering very slowly, and that there is great
demand for peace and peaceful relations between countries.

Mr Xi Jinping has advanced several major initiatives, including a civilisational initiative that has to do with global development. To the best
of our knowledge, the Russian side has a positive opinion of these initiatives.
Cooperation continues to develop at all levels, and we will continue this
cooperation in the interests of the entire world’s development and prosperity.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much, and please
convey my best wishes to President Xi Jinping.

<…>

Fonte/Source: http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/70941