With over 56,000 Chinese students now studying in Russia and a surge of young Russians learning Chinese, the next generation is building the trust that long-term strategic partnerships for China and Russia require.

Yaroslav Lissovolik, CEO and founder of BRICS+ Analytics, tells CGTN's Xu Qinduo that trust doesn't come from nowhere – it comes from people-to-people exchanges. And visa-free travel has been a major breakthrough, which can be significantly conducive to greater FDI and trade. It's not just about quantity, he says, it's about quality. Bottom-up cooperation, from students to small businesses, is what makes strategic partnerships sustainable.