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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: President Xi Jinping, friends, ladies and gentlemen,

The fifteenth anniversary of the Treaty on Good-Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation is indeed a remarkable occasion for our nations, and it is not by chance that that we timed today’s summit talks, which have been so fruitful, to coincide with that date. It is this Treaty that outlined and provided the legal framework for the strategic and collaborative nature of Russian-Chinese relations. A new type of relations, based on mutual respect, friendship, and consideration for each other’s interests, these relations not only meet the fundamental interests of our peoples, the long-term objectives of our two countries’ development, but also, as my friend President Xi Jinping has just said, they are an important factor of global and regional stability and security.

In building the Russian-Chinese partnership, we have relied on many centuries of cooperation between our countries. The unprecedented level, achieved through mutual trust and understanding, allowed us to resolve complicated and fairly delicate issued that we inherited, and most importantly, we have opened opportunities for moving forward, for establishing multilateral relations in the most diverse areas.

In the run-up to the Treaty, hundreds of bilateral documents have been signed, favourable conditions were created for boosting the cooperation of government agencies, regions, public and business communities, representatives of science, culture and education. Inter-parliamentary exchanges have acquired a systemic character.

Russia and China closely cooperate in foreign policy and security, we have the same approaches towards a wide range of international and regional problems.

Law enforcement agencies are enhancing their coordination, including in countering today’s biggest threat: terrorism.

In fact, the Treaty has become a guide in our everyday activities. Every four years, joint plans are adopted on implementing the provisions of the Treaty. We have managed to establish stable trade and economic cooperation and set up a power alliance, we are expanding financial and investment interaction and boosting cooperation in innovations and high technologies.

Impressive progress in developing humanitarian contacts has been made in the past 15 years. Cultural, educational and tourist exchanges have increased many times over.

Friends, colleagues,

We are grateful to our Chinese partners and friends for such thorough and festive preparations for the event related to the fifteenth anniversary of signing this Treaty, which has truly made a significant contribution to the development of our bilateral relations, creating prospects for further development and strengthening friendship between the peoples of China and Russia.

Thank you very much.