Vladimir Putin: at country level, Russia ranks as China’s largest partner among European countries

Russian–Chinese relations are developing steadily and across all areas, including high-tech manufacturing, science, education, and space exploration, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a major press conference and Direct Line event held at Gostiny Dvor.

"An absolute figure is somewhere around US$240–250 billion in turnover. […] At the country level of cooperation between Russia and China, Russia ranks first among European countries. […] We are cooperating, and this is simply an indicator of the trust between our countries and the level of that trust. […] Therefore, I hope that it is in this spirit that we will continue to develop relations with our Chinese friends in the near and more distant historical perspective"

Vladimir Putin President of Russia

A journalist from Xinhua News Agency, a TV BRICS partner, Liu Kai, asked the President to assess the achievements of Russian–Chinese strategic cooperation. He recalled that next year both countries will mark two important anniversaries: 30 years since the establishment of relations of partnership and strategic interaction between Russia and China, and 25 years since the signing of the Treaty of Good-Neighbourliness and Friendly Cooperation.

“I regard Chairman Xi Jinping as a reliable friend and a stable partner – my reliable friend and a stable partner and ally of Russia. And this is the most important foundation for the development of Russian–Chinese relations. They are developing consistently,” Putin stressed.

Answering questions during the press conference, the President also noted industrial growth in Russia.

“GDP growth stands at 1 per cent, but if we take the last three-year period, which is also a fully valid way of calculating it, total growth amounts to 9.7 per cent. […] The manufacturing industry grew by 3.1 per cent. Agricultural production grew by 3.3 per cent,” the Head of State said.

He noted that the country had achieved a record-low unemployment rate of 2.2 per cent. In addition, according to the forecasts voiced by the President, by the end of the year inflation in Russia may fall below the projected level and settle at 5.7–5.8 per cent.

Alongside representatives of China’s Xinhua News Agency, journalists from other TV BRICS partner media were present at the meeting with the President of Russia, including the Brazilian magazine Brasil de Fato and the Russian bureau of Iran’s IRNA.

“This (holding such a press conference) in its own right, first the President talks to the people, and then to the media, which are actually the representatives of the people. Here we get a picture of Russia at the end of the year, and we can imagine the prospects for the coming year. A conversation with the head of another country is of great importance for transparency and increasing mutual understanding,” IRNA representative Seyed Ahmad Najafi shared his impressions in a conversation with TV BRICS.

More than 3 million appeals from citizens were submitted to the Direct Line with the President. The Head of State spent more than four and a half hours answering questions from journalists and residents of Russia live on air.

Photo: kremlin.ru