Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday expressed China's willingness to maintain high-level exchanges, strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields with Russia, and deepen the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination when he co-chaired the 27th regular meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin via video link. 

Li noted that as each other's most prominent neighbors and emerging markets, China and Russia enjoy traditional friendships and have continuously developed bilateral relations based on the principles of non-alliance, non-confrontation, and non-targeting of third parties. 

China is ready to maintain high-level exchanges with Russia, strengthen exchanges and cooperation in various fields, deepen the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination, uphold the basic norms governing international relations, safeguard regional and world peace, stability, development and prosperity, and bring more benefits to the two peoples, Li said. 

After listening to the relevant work reports delivered by the two sides, Li and Mishustin highly appreciated the effective and pragmatic work done over the past year. 

Noting that the economies of China and Russia are highly complementary, Li expressed the hope that the two sides will make good use of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, steadily advance cooperation projects in key areas, and constantly upgrade the level of economic and trade cooperation. 

Li also called on the two sides to optimize the customs clearance process, jointly maintain a stable and smooth industrial and supply chain, deepen cultural, people-to-people and local exchanges, and consolidate the public opinion base for friendly relations between the two countries.

Mishustin said that under the current complicated international situation, the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination has maintained a sound development momentum, and bilateral cooperation in various fields has continued to move forward. 

Russia is willing to work with China to give full play to the role of the regular meeting mechanism between Russian prime minister and Chinese premier, strengthen cooperation in key areas such as economy and trade, deepen cultural and people-to-people exchanges, upgrade bilateral cooperation and consolidate the good-neighborly friendship between the two countries, Mishustin said. 

Russia is also ready to work with China to tackle global challenges and promote the development of a multi-polar world, he added.

(Cover: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang co-chairs the 27th regular meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin via video link in Beijing, China, December 5, 2022. /Xinhua)