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The Chinese President addressed the audience in Russian. In his speech Mr Jiang praised the Treaty on Good-Neighbourly Relations, Friendship and Cooperation the two leaders had signed the day before. He said the document was an important landmark in the development of the two countries’ diversified partnership.

The central idea of the Treaty, Mr Jiang said, was to develop long-term Russian-Chinese coordination of efforts while renouncing confrontation. On the other hand, he said, the Treaty was not directed against third countries.

The Chinese leader acknowledged that in the past century, through historical reasons, the two countries had gone through periods of confrontation and allied relations. But with the end of the Cold War, favourable conditions emerged for establishing inter-state relations of a new type based on the five principles of peaceful coexistence: respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-aggression, non-interference in internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit. The Treaty, which embodied all these principles, was signed on July 16.

Mr Jiang expressed his belief that step-by-step development of Russian-Chinese contacts would serve the interests of all members of the international community and help strengthen peace and stability on this planet.

Speaking in reply, the Russian head of state emphasised that the new Treaty so successfully presented for the first time in public by the Chinese President was looking to the future, to the 21st century.

President Putin sincerely thanked Mr Jiang and every member of the Chinese leadership for their dedication to the development of bilateral relations. In Mr Putin’s opinion, the public speech the Chinese President delivered in Russian was evidence of Mr Jiang’s special respect for Russia and its culture.