Xi, Putin vow joint efforts in new year

Leaders extend greetings and pledge to work toward international stability

President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin hailed on Tuesday the extraordinary ties between China and Russia and vowed to lift their bilateral relations to a new level in the new year.

As they exchanged New Year's greetings, the two presidents pledged to work together to intensify coordination between their countries in international affairs to inject stability into the changing world situation.

Xi, in his message on behalf of the Chinese government and people, extended sincere greetings and best wishes to Putin and the Russian people.

Xi said that 2019 was an extraordinary year in the history of the development of China-Russia relations.

Xi recalled he and Putin jointly announcing in June, when he made a state visit to Russia, the upgrading of bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era, a move for the countries to open a new chapter in their friendship.

During his visit, he and Putin signed a joint statement on strengthening contemporary global strategic stability, demonstrating their firm determination to jointly safeguard global strategic stability, Xi said.

He hailed the two countries' fruitful cooperation in such fields as economy and trade, energy, people-to-people exchanges, and science and technology. He noted that this collaboration also played out on subnational levels and said that altogether it has not only delivered tangible benefits to the two countries and their people but has also contributed greatly to world peace and development.

Speaking of the highlights of this cooperation in the new year, Xi said that 2020 has been designated the Year of Scientific and Technological Innovation between China and Russia, and that the two sides will also jointly celebrate the 75th anniversary of victory in the World Anti-Fascist War and the founding of the United Nations.

Xi said he stands ready to maintain close contact with Putin and work together to guide the bilateral relationship.

China and Russia will also jointly safeguard multilateralism and the international system with the United Nations at the core, he said, so as to inject more stability and positive energy into a world changing in ways unseen in a century.

Putin, for his part, extended his sincere New Year greetings to Xi and wished the Chinese people happiness and good health.

Putin said that he and Xi have met several times and reached a series of important consensuses, which have opened new prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields.

He also highlighted the bilateral cooperation, and said the governments, legislative bodies and various departments of the two countries have engaged in productive coordination and that the Russia-China east-route natural gas pipeline was completed and put into operation.

Putin said he firmly believes that with joint efforts, the two countries' comprehensive cooperation and their constructive coordination on international issues will be upgraded to higher levels.

This was the seventh consecutive year that Xi and Putin have exchanged New Year's greetings since Xi took office as president in 2013.

Premier Li Keqiang and his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, also exchanged New Year's greetings on Tuesday.

Li said in his message that 2019 was a special and greatly significant year in the development of the China-Russia relationship, and that he will work with Medvedev in the new year to give full play to existing procedures and platforms and inject more impetus into the common development and revitalization of the two countries.

Medvedev said that Russia-China ties are at their best level in history and he believes that the two countries will achieve even more through their cooperation in various fields in the new year.