FM emphasizes cooperation in meeting with Lavrov

State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday, making final political preparations for the meeting of the two heads of states of the two countries.

Calling Lavrov an old friend, Wang welcomed his visit -- which happened during the Chinese Spring Festival and a day before the Beijing Winter Olympics begin.

President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will hold their first in-person meeting on Friday in more than two years, planning and charting China-Russia relations in the post-pandemic era, Wang said.

The meeting shows high-level strategic cooperation between the two countries and mutual trust and friendship between the two heads of state, he added.

Noting last year marked the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, Wang said the two countries had solemnly celebrated the events under the leadership and guidance of the two heads of state and China-Russia relations have new opportunities for development.

Wang expressed the willingness to further enhance mutual connectivity with Russia by positively promoting cooperation across the whole energy industrial chain .

He also called on the two countries to promote steady pragmatic cooperation by enhancing mutual understanding and trust as well as bolstering the alignment of measures to curb cross-border transmission of the pandemic and ensure regular exchanges.

Promoting the dovetailing of the Belt and Road Initiative with the Eurasian Economic Union was an important consensus reached by the two heads of state, Wang said.

Under the guidance of implementing the consensus of the two heads of state, Wang said China was ready to work with Russia to stay committed to deepening bilateral longstanding friendship and comprehensive strategic coordination, and resolutely safeguard international fairness and justice to better benefit peoples of the two countries and the world.

Lavrov said the upcoming meeting between the heads of China and Russia carried significant importance for further deepening bilateral relations, promoting the building of a modern international relations system and advancing global sustainable development.

High-level strategic coordination and close collaboration was the shared consensus of the two countries, immune to the effects of the international situation and conducive to enhancing stability and predictability of international relations, he said.

Russia appreciated China's efforts to deepen bilateral cooperation, he said, adding the country stood ready to work with China to strengthen links between the building of the Belt and Road Initiative and EAEU to expand bilateral common interests.

As Beijing will become the first dual Olympic city in the world, the Russian foreign minister said he believed the world would witness China's extraordinary abilities to host a spectacular international sports events and overcome the impact of the ravaging pandemic.

Both sides unanimously agreed to promote the Olympic spirit, rejected the politicization of sports and supported the successful holding of the upcoming Beijing Winter Olympics.

The two sides also compared notes and coordinated their stances on regional and international issues of common concern, such as BRICS cooperation and the situations in Ukraine, Afghanistan and the Korean Peninsula.

Russia briefed China on the latest updates in its relations the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, emphasizing the principled position that security is indivisible,for which China expressed understanding and support.