Premier Li Keqiang met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on June 25.

The Premier highly commended the current Sino-Russian relationship and the cooperation that has progressed in various fields between the two countries. He said several meetings between Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Putin this year greatly pushed the comprehensive and in-depth development of the bilateral ties.

Premier Li Keqiang (R2) meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin (L3) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on June 25. [Photo/Xinhua]

This year marks the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Sino-Russian Good-Neighborly Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation and the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Sino-Russian strategic partnership. The development of the bilateral ties between China and Russia is facing new opportunities, said the Premier.

China is willing to continuously deepen political mutual trust with Russia, promote the pragmatic cooperation in various fields and enhance non-government friendly exchanges, Premier Li added.

During the meeting, the Premier stressed that the uncertain and unstable factors in the world economy are still increasing and the global economic recovery and economic growth in all countries need a stable political environment.

China is willing to strengthen its cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union, initiated by Russia, to achieve institutional arrangements relating to trade and investment as soon as possible, Premier Li said.

Meanwhile, following the principal of co-sharing benefits and risks, China will explore an integrated cooperation with Russia, covering the sectors of oil, gas, nuclear energy and coal. It will also promote mutual investment and large project cooperation and carry out financial cooperation, such as currency swap and payment system, the Premier added.

Premier Li also called for the two sides to continue to host the Media Exchange Year, and promote educational and cultural cooperation in an effort to deepen the friendship among people in the two countries.

Putin said the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership has developed fast and robustly with broad prospects. China is Russia’s biggest trading partner, and the foundation for the economic cooperation has become increasingly strong. Putin expressed hopes to work with China in the construction and connection of the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union framework.

He also expressed his willingness to promote capacity and production cooperation, and deepen ties in areas such as nuclear power, electricity power and aviation and aerospace, while also carrying out third-party market cooperation and supporting and expanding non-governmental trade cooperation in the two countries. This aims to enhance China-Russia economic and trade cooperation in both quality and quantity, Putin added.

Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli, Liu Yandong, and Wang Yang also attended the meeting.