UNITED NATIONS — State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in the United Nations on Sept 21 with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the ongoing 77th session of the UN General Assembly.

Lavrov wished the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China a full success, and believed China will make new and greater achievements in national construction. He said Russia is willing to make joint efforts with China to follow through on the important common understandings reached by the two heads of state during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Samarkand summit, and continuously advance bilateral practical cooperation.

The Global Development Initiative and Global Security Initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping are of great importance and will achieve international synergy in promoting peace, development, equality and justice for the world. Russia highly appreciates the initiatives and actively supports them, he said.

Lavrov hoped Russia and China would strengthen coordination in international and regional bodies including the United Nations, the SCO and BRICS.

For his part, Wang said the heads of state of the two countries held an important meeting and reached new common understandings in Samarkand, charting the course for the development of bilateral relations. China is willing to work with Russia to implement the important common understandings in a comprehensive and efficient manner.

At present, the pandemic situation remains severe and the international landscape is undergoing complex changes. As permanent members of the UN Security Council and responsible major countries, China and Russia should play their due roles, Wang said.

He said the two sides should deepen strategic cooperation, advance high-quality practical cooperation, take an active part in global governance, work together to meet global challenges, promote a fairer international order, oppose unilateralism and power politics, and uphold justice for developing countries as well as small and medium-sized countries.

The two sides exchanged views on the Ukraine issue. Noting that China will continue to hold an objective and fair stance to promote peace talks, Wang said China hopes that the related parties will not give up dialogue, and will strive to address security concerns through peace talks.

Lavrov expounded Russia's position on the issue, stressing that security is indivisible and that Russia is still willing to solve problems through dialogue and negotiation.

Both sides also exchanged views on the situation on the Korean Peninsula.