I am delighted to welcome the participants of the 10th international conference Russia and China: Cooperation in a New Era. First of all, I would like to express gratitude to its organisers – the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). It is through their efforts that this forum has become a respected platform for political analysis, which provides substantial expert support to comprehensive Russian-Chinese interaction and strategic partnership.

This conference is being held in the year of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory. Russia and China treasure the memory of the heroism of our predecessors who took up arms to defend the world from German Nazism and Japanese militarism. Strong evidence of our indissoluble friendship is that President of China Xi Jinping accepted the invitation of President Vladimir Putin to be the main guest at the May 9 celebrations in Moscow that marked the anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. The day before, our leaders held extensive and substantive talks on all items on the bilateral and international agenda. The Russian President reaffirmed his intention to accept the invitation to attend the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the people of China’s Victory over Japanese aggression, which will be held in Beijing on September 3.

Russian-Chinese ties are an example of relations between great powers in a multipolar world. They are self-sufficient and secure from changes on the political stage and external influence. We continue to strengthen our trust-based political dialogue, expand our trade and economic cooperation and deepen our cultural and humanitarian contacts.

Moscow and Beijing are firmly committed to the creation of a more just and stable world order. We are working jointly to coordinate the parameters of and conditions for interstate relations in the new era. We reject any manifestations of hegemony, unilateral restrictive measures and other modern practices of neocolonialism. We call for eradicating terrorism, extremism and Nazism in all their forms and manifestations, and we are working to ensure that the goals and principles of the UN Charter are interpreted and applied by all members of the international community in their entirety and as a whole. Our countries remain committed to the principle of equal and indivisible security and are promoting initiatives for its practical implementation at the global and Eurasian levels.

I am confident that this Russian-Chinese conference will proceed, as usual, in a creative atmosphere, and that the valuable ideas put forth during your discussions will be applied in the efforts of our countries’ executive authorities to effectively implement our leaders’ instructions.

I would like to wish you rewarding work and all the best.

 

SERGEY LAVROV