Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi met with Leonid Drachevsky, chairman of the China-Russia Friendship Committee for Peace and Development, in Beijing Monday.

Wu said Sino-Russian relations have developed smoothly in recent years and the mutual-beneficial bilateral cooperation in various fields has produced significant progress.

The China-Russia Friendship Committee for Peace and Development has done a lot in promoting the understanding and traditional friendship between the two peoples, she said, voicing her wish that the committee would make continuous efforts and give scope to its role as a main channel to promote Sino-Russian bilateral friendship.

Drachevsky, also the Russian president's representative to the Siberian Federal District, said the Russian members of the committee will go on working hard for the improvement of exchanges and friendship between the people of Russia and China.

The two sides also had an exchange of views on improving economic and trade cooperation between China and the Russian Siberian Federal District.

Shortly after his arrival in Beijing last Friday, Drachevsky held talks with Li Guixian, co-chairmen of the China-Russia Friendship Committee for Peace and Development. Li is also vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

During his stay in China, Drachevsky and his party will also travel to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in northwest China.

The China-Russia Friendship Committee for Peace and Development was officially founded in 1997 with an aim to coordinate and advance in an all-round-way the people-to-people exchanges of the two countries so as to ensure bilateral long-term, good-neighborly relations.

(Xinhua News Agency August 31, 2004)