MOSCOW, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Russia and China share a profound friendship that has endured since they stood together in resistance against fascism, a Russian scholar has said.

In an interview with Xinhua, Ekaterina Zaklyazminskaya, leading researcher at the Institute of China and Modern Asia at the Russian Academy of Sciences, drew special attention to the international lifeline jointly established by the two countries in the treacherous Gobi Desert during the World Anti-Fascist War.

The 3,000-km supply line, connecting the Soviet Union with northwestern China, played a significant role in their mutual fight against the fascists, through which much-needed strategic supplies and materials were shipped to the Soviet Union, she said.

"Further, military equipment and weapons were made from these raw materials, which helped our soldiers in the fight against the fascists," the scholar said, adding that the artery also supplied China with disassembled aircraft and specialists who trained and prepared Chinese pilots.

She highlighted the historical role of the Ivanovo International Boarding School, opened in the 1930s in the Soviet Union to educate children of Chinese revolutionaries, commending the contributions of these children during the war.

"Chinese children, although they lived far from their parents, really wanted to help. They saw that the war had begun, that it was necessary to help, to repel the occupiers, to repel the fascists," she said. "Little kids understood that we must be together, we must work together and only in this way can we win."

Despite the freezing cold in winter, Chinese children dug an anti-tank ditch, collected empty bottles from which they made explosive mixtures, learned to grow grains and vegetables, and sewed clothes for the front, Zaklyazminskaya said.

"We also greatly appreciate the fact that the Chinese people so carefully preserve the memory of our heroes. And we, of course, hope that the sacrifice of every Chinese soldier and every Soviet soldier who gave their lives so that we -- their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren -- could live in peace will never be forgotten," she added.

"Soviet-Chinese, and then Russian-Chinese friendship, is profound. Because we are always ready to help each other in all difficult situations," emphasized Zaklyazminskaya. "We in Russia greatly appreciate that we have such a reliable partner."

On the current Russia-China cooperation, the expert depicted it as developing rapidly and getting stronger every year, given that logistics infrastructure is developing, and cooperation in the industrial, cultural and political spheres is strengthening.

"Our countries often look at issues on the global agenda in the same way and coordinate their positions," she said.

Regarding the importance of the China-proposed Belt and Road initiative aimed at developing infrastructure and deepening economic cooperation between countries, Zaklyazminskay deemed the initiative very valuable for global development and fundamentally different from the initiatives proposed by the West.

"China is pursuing a very peaceful policy. It does not have the predatory, colonialist policy that many Western countries have pursued in their interactions with the countries of the Global South," she said.

The expert also praised the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity, highlighting China's approach to international cooperation as one based on mutual respect and non-coercion.

"There is the concept of a clash of civilizations, but China puts forward a different idea that civilizations can coexist, Zaklyazminskaya concluded, adding that building a community with a shared future for humanity "can truly unite us as one large human family." Enditem