Strategic partnership at work

Russian President Vladimir Putin's first visit to China after his inauguration,will take place on June 5. Eight months ago, in October 2011, then presidential nominee Putin visited China, with fruitful results. Russia-China relations were defined as a comprehensive strategic interaction and a partnership of mutual trust. After his inauguration on May 7, President Putin signed a decree that set Russia's foreign policy priorities.

That edict introduced the new focus of Russia's foreign policy outlined by Putin in his seven pre-election articles.

The task is to bring the Russian people's sense of national identity and Russia's foreign policy into compliance with its geographic, civilizational and cultural genom, which, as Putin wrote, represents an organic combination of the "fundamental bases of European civilization and centuries-long experience of interacting with the East, where today new centers of economic power and political influence are actively growing". In the course of his pre-election campaign Putin stated that Russia needs a strong and prosperous China, while China needs a strong and prosperous Russia. As for the assumption that China's rapid rise would pose a threat for Russia, he rejected it as totally untenable. On the contrary, he described China's rise as a challenge that would facilitate the accelerated rise of Russia as well, and said it is the wind that Russia has to catch in its sails.