Xi, Putin for enhanced China-Russia ties

Chinese President Xi Jinping met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and stressed that Beijing stands ready to work with Moscow to continue high-level close contact, enhance mutual support and consolidate political and strategic mutual trust.

The two leaders met Saturday on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting, reports Xinhua.

The meeting called for joint efforts by China and Russia to push forward the process of the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP).

Xi told Putin that both sides should fully implement the consensus reached at the 2014 APEC Beijing meeting and other meetings in recent years.

The FTAAP process was launched at the 2014 Beijing meeting and a roadmap was endorsed. A collective strategic study on the FTAAP was conducted subsequently, as agreed by the APEC members, and the result should be reported to the economic leaders by the end of 2016.

During the meeting with Putin, Xi underlined the need for China-Russia cooperation under the APEC framework in a bid to promote the bloc to contribute more to regional and global economic growth.

For his part, Putin said Russia and China should strengthen coordination and collaboration in APEC and other multilateral mechanisms.

He said that the high-level relationship between Russia and China is very significant for global peace and stability, noting both sides should maintain close contact.

The Chinese President called on the two neighboring nations to enhance synergy of their national development strategies, and further integrate the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU).

The two leaders also made in-depth exchange of views on other international and regional issues of shared concern, agreeing to safeguard peace and security in Northeast Asia, Central Asia and other regions neighboring their two countries.