The scheduled visit to China of the President of Russia was also discussed.
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President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev: Mr President,
I am very happy to have this new meeting with you, which takes place on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Tashkent. It provides us with another opportunity to exchange our views on the development of our bilateral relations, as well as the current global situation.
The last time we met was in Moscow, on the anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. I would like to once again thank you for taking part in this event, which was very important for us.
This year has been filled with a wide variety of events, including bilateral ones. It’s the Year of Chinese Language in our nation. And also the year during which we have been meeting very actively.
This is our third meeting, but it is certainly not our last. We will meet again soon, and we will discuss economic development, as well as the global situation. Naturally, these kinds of discussions will continue later, when I visit the People’s Republic of China this autumn.
I hope that today, we will be able to discuss some regional issues. We have a whole set of problems that have arisen recently, in addition to problems that the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China are addressing through direct dialogue and consultations. It is also very important to touch base regarding the international agenda. I hope that we will be successful in doing this.
I am happy to be meeting with you again.
President of The People’S Republic of China Hu Jintao (retranslated): Mr President,
It is a pleasure to see you again just one month after our last meeting. Your nation will be celebrating Russia Day on June 12. With this in mind, I would like to congratulate you and the great Russian nation on this holiday, on behalf of the government and the people of China.
One month ago, Russia successfully organised celebrations to mark the 65th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, which resonated widely and positively throughout the international community.
We are genuinely happy for your successes and achievements. I would like to use this opportunity to once again express our sincere appreciation and thank you and all our Russian colleagues for the warm welcome and hospitality.
In the first half of this year we are witnessing a full-scale advancement of Russian-Chinese relations. You and I are meeting for the third time. We have achieved a great deal of unity in our views on strengthening our strategic interaction and deepening our practical cooperation.
As you noted, we have many important events coming up in the second half of the year with regard to our bilateral relations. I therefore suggest that we focus on the following important issues.
First of all, it is imperative to properly plan and organise your visit to our nation, and to hold the 15th regular Russian-Chinese meeting of Heads of Government, to maintain the strong momentum of growth in our relations.
Your visit to our nation in September is a major event in the relations between our nations. I have already given instructions to the relevant Chinese agencies to maintain very close contact with their Russian colleagues, in order to properly coordinate various aspects of the preparatory work and ensure that your visit to our nation is a complete success.
The second issue is that we must work together to achieve even greater results in our cooperation in the trade, economic, energy, and military technology sectors.