Mr Putin held talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao that concluded with the signing of a number of bilateral documents, including a joint Russian-Chinese declaration, and he also took part in the opening ceremony of the Year of Russia in China.
On the second day of his visit, the President met with Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Wen Jiabao and with Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Wu Bangguo. Mr Putin also took part in the Russian-Chinese Business Communities’ Economic Forum.
Addressing the forum, Mr Putin noted that despite the achievements reached in bilateral trade ties between the two countries, a number of problems still remain, including the unfavourable change in the structure of Russian-Chinese trade and the raw materials bias of Russia’s exports to China. The current trade structure is dependent on price fluctuations on raw materials markets, and in order to ensure the stability of their bilateral trade, Russia and China need to improve the trade structure and develop cooperation in the technology and manufacturing sectors.
The President ended his official visit to China by visiting the Shaolin Monastery in Henan Province.