Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that China is one of
the key partners of his country and that coordination of the two
countries serves as a very important factor in handling major
international issues.
Putin told Chinese reporters on the eve of his trip to Beijing that
his visit, scheduled for December 1-3, would be of "special
significance," as it is just after the 16th National Congress of
the Communist Party of China (CPC).
He
said the CPC congress was a big event not only for China but also
for the world because of China's huge economic potential and
increasing international influence as well as the noticeable power
transfer of the country.
China's foreign policy is vital to all its partners, especially to
Russia, he said.
Putin noted he has established good private ties with Chinese
President Jiang Zemin and met newly elected CPC General Secretary
Hu Jintao in Moscow last year.
Viewing the Good-neighborly Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation
signed last year between Russia and China as a milestone in
bilateral relations, Putin called on both sides to further
coordinate their stands to jointly realize the tasks set down in
the treaty.
Putin highlighted cooperation in energy and military fields, saying
long-term cooperation in the energy sphere are in the interests of
both sides.
As
to Russia-China cooperation in global affairs, Putin said the two
sides should first strengthen coordination in the most important
political issues, such as the maintenance of world stability and
the prevention of proliferation of nuclear weapons and weapons of
mass destruction.
Putin said terrorism was the most serious threat faced by most
countries in the world and praised the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization (SCO) for its important role in this context.
Since its creation in 1996, the SCO has been growing in weight,
said the president. "We pay attention not only to Central Asia but
also to neighboring Asian-Pacific areas, which could also be the
target of terrorism attacks."
To
effectively fight international terrorism and national separatism,
the SCO member states should unite within the frame of the
organization, speed up implementation of the agreements and expand
cooperation in all fields, he said.
Commenting on the recent entry of some former Soviet republics into
NATO, Putin said a political-military bloc like NATO should not
expand in the current world situation, as the expansion would do
nothing to help cope with main threats of international terrorism
or the proliferation of nuclear weapons. However, he said every
sovereign state had its right to define its foreign policy priority
and to decide on accession to any organization.
He
said Russia had no necessity to become a NATO member at any rate,
in consideration of its security. But it had increased cooperation
with the Western military alliance by forming a joint council and
both sides were satisfied with the cooperation, said the
president.
Putin said Moscow would not rule out the possibility of further
cooperation with NATO provided that the latter gradually changed
its function to cope with new tasks and new threats and made its
activities tallying with Russia's national interests.
He
also reiterated that Russia's relations with other members of the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) would continue to be a
priority in his country's foreign policy. Russia has close ties
with the CIS countries in the aspects of economy, culture, language
and history, with 20 million Russians currently living in the
former Soviet countries, he added.
Putin expressed gratitude to the Chinese leadership and the Chinese
people for their support to solve the last month's hostage-taking
crisis in Moscow. The terrorists' attempt to split the country and
to destroy the reconstruction of Chechnya had failed, he said. On
the contrary, the tragedy helped strengthen the unity of Russian
society and pushed forward the political settlement of the Chechen
issue, he said.
Putin said the only way to solve the Chechen problem was to restore
peace there and help local people establish their own constitution
and power structure.
As
to the domestic situation, Putin said Russia has enjoyed economic
growth in consecutive years, with increases in wages, pensions and
living standards of the Russian people.
He
said Russia is estimated to gain a 4 percent economic growth this
year, higher than the original target of 3.5 percent. "We would be
satisfied with our work," Putin said, "if Russia could get a rate
of 7 percent achieved by China."
(People's Daily November 30, 2002)