Beijing [China], April 15 : As the global energy crisis deepens and the Hormuz blockade enters a critical phase, the "unprecedented" partnership between Russia and China has taken centre stage.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday concluded a high-stakes two-day official visit to Beijing, where he was received by President Xi Jinping and held marathon sessions with Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
During his talks with President Xi Jinping & FM Wang Yi, Minister Lavrov held an in-depth exchange of views on a broad range of bilateral & international issues of mutual interest, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.
The visit serves as a definitive diplomatic prelude to President Vladimir Putin's upcoming official visit to China, scheduled for the first half of this year.
President Xi hailed the current state of bilateral relations, noting that the 2001 Treaty of Good-Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation has successfully guided the two nations for 25 years.
Lavrov, in turn, underscored the "guiding role of leader-level diplomacy" in ensuring that the Russia-China ties remain a stabilising force in a volatile world.
He highlighted the role of both nations in contributing to what he described as stability in international affairs and emphasised cooperation within multilateral platforms such as the United Nations, the UN Security Council, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), BRICS, the G20, and APEC.
Addressing Jinping, Lavrov said, "I would like to express my sincere gratitude for your warm words addressed to us and for this meeting. It underscores your personal attention to the development of mutually beneficial strategic relations with Russia, as well as to the agenda that will be discussed at the next summit during the upcoming visit of President Vladimir Putin to China. Yesterday, my colleague and friend Wang Yi and I held very detailed discussions on preparations for this major upcoming visit."
"Thanks to the diplomacy of the two Leaders - yourself and Vladimir Putin - our relations continue to demonstrate a high degree of resilience amid the upheavals that have engulfed the modern world both economically and geopolitically. Regrettably, these contradictions are increasingly taking on a military dimension."
"Against this backdrop, Russia-China relations, which serve as a stabilising factor in international affairs, are becoming ever more significant for the rest of the world, for the Global Majority, which seeks not problems or turbulence, but calm conditions for sustainable long-term development. It is in this context that we held detailed discussions and will brief you today on the outcome of our exchange."
"Bilateral relations are on the rise in trade, investment, humanitarian affairs, culture and across all other areas. We also discussed regional and international issues, both from the standpoint of future Russia-China coordination on the bilateral track and in terms of our joint work at the #UN, the UN Security Council, the #SCO, #BRICS, the #G20 and #APEC."
"As we agreed yesterday, we now have robust roadmaps for further progress across all tracks identified by you and President Vladimir Putin for the period ahead."
The Russian side noted that the talks reflect the continuing momentum in Russia-China engagement across multiple sectors, with both countries expected to further deepen coordination in the coming months. Further details on outcomes of the visit are expected after additional bilateral meetings and follow-up diplomatic engagements.