China stresses Russia bond despite 'sanction list'

A potential sanction list released by the United States that includes more than 200 Russian politicians and business leaders will not affect China's ties and cooperation with Russia, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday.

"China-Russia ties are mature and stable, and are secure against changes of the external environment," Hua told a daily news conference.

"I believe that under joint efforts by the two countries, the relations will continue to develop at a high level, and that the bilateral pragmatic cooperation in various fields, including military, will continue to develop normally."

The US Treasury Department on Tuesday published a list of 114 Russian politicians and 96 business leaders widely seen as potential targets for new sanctions, although the document specifies that it should not be interpreted as a sanction list.

"China has always been opposed to the act of frequently resorting to or threatening unilateral sanctions," Hua said, adding that she is aware the so-called "Kremlin report" says that the listing of names does not mean sanctions or limits on the people's exchanges with citizens in the US or other countries.

Russia and the US, both major countries that have significant influence in the world and both permanent members of the UN Security Council, shoulder important responsibility for global peace and security, the spokeswoman emphasized.

"We hope the two countries will, on the basis of equality and mutual respect, address properly the difference through friendly consultation," she said.

Jiang Yi, a researcher at the institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said Hua's remarks reflect the fact that China-Russia relations are "at the best level in history".

China and Russia have continued cooperation with higher quality and quantity, and have been trying to expand their cooperation, Jiang said.

Xinhua contributed to this story.