Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, January 14 /Xinhua/ — China-Russia relations will reach new heights in 2025, becoming a model of good-neighborliness, friendship, and mutually beneficial cooperation. This opinion was expressed by Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui in an opinion piece recently published in the Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper.
"Amid accelerating profound changes and intertwined international turbulence, China-Russia relations, under the strategic leadership of the two heads of state, have overcome difficulties and reached new heights. Cooperation in all areas has achieved another year of 'big harvest,' becoming a model of good-neighborliness, friendship, and mutually beneficial cooperation between great powers and neighboring countries," the publication notes.
The Chinese diplomat noted that the political trust between China and Russia is "rock-solid." In 2025, the two leaders conducted successful mutual visits and jointly participated in commemorative events in Moscow and Beijing commemorating the 80th anniversary of Victory in the World Anti-Fascist War. "Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin held in-depth, friendly, and fruitful talks, reached a number of new important agreements on Chinese-Russian relations and international and regional issues, signed a Joint Statement on Further Deepening the Comprehensive Partnership and Strategic Coordination in the New Era, and outlined a clear strategic plan for the development of bilateral relations," the ambassador recalled.
Zhang Hanhui praised the progress in practical cooperation. He noted that bilateral trade remained stable: from January to November 2025, trade turnover amounted to $203.67 billion, exceeding the $200 billion mark for the third consecutive year. "The updated Agreement on the Promotion and Mutual Protection of Investments has entered into force, and documents such as the updated version of the China-Russia Investment Cooperation Plan and the memorandum on investment cooperation in the agricultural sector have ensured the rational allocation of enterprise investments," the Chinese diplomat emphasized.
He expressed confidence that Chinese-Russian trade and economic cooperation will continue to expand in 2026. "The two sides will fully utilize the benefits of the mutual visa-free travel policy and take other measures to stimulate more active trade through closer people-to-people exchanges, unlock new market demand and areas for growth in cooperation, better serve the development and recovery of both countries, and provide greater impetus to global economic recovery," Zhang Hanhui said.
According to the ambassador, the mutual introduction of a trial visa-free regime for citizens of China and Russia was not only an important result of the strategic leadership of the two heads of state, but also a key measure to deepen practical cooperation and humanitarian exchanges, which will certainly contribute to the further strengthening of mutual understanding and friendship between the peoples of the two countries.
Zhang Hanhui noted the successful conclusion of the China-Russia Years of Culture, which not only significantly enriched the spiritual and cultural lives of the peoples of both countries but also imbued their centuries-old friendship with new cultural meaning. He also expressed hope that 2026-2027, designated as the China-Russia Years of Education, will further expand the scope of mutual academic exchanges and deepen humanitarian cooperation in education. He cited statistics, citing "Currently, the number of Chinese students studying in Russia has reached 66,000, while the number of Russian students in China is 21,000."
Speaking about strategic cooperation, the diplomat stated that it continued to deepen. He recalled that during President Xi Jinping's visit to Russia in May 2025, the two leaders reaffirmed their intention to strengthen coordination within multilateral formats such as the UN, SCO, and BRICS. They expressed their commitment to strengthening the representation and voice of developing countries in global governance, and jointly advocated for an equitable and orderly multipolar world and inclusive economic globalization. "In September, at the SCO Tianjin Summit, President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Governance Initiative, which immediately received a positive response and support from President Vladimir Putin," the ambassador noted, adding that the active interaction between the two leaders in multilateral forums fully reflects the shared position and strategic understanding between China and Russia on important issues such as global governance.
Zhang Hanhui assured that in the face of international changes, China and Russia will continue to act as constructive forces in upholding global strategic stability and improving global governance, implement genuine multilateralism, safeguard the international order based on international law, and promote the sustainable development of a multipolar world.
The Chinese Ambassador to the Russian Federation emphasized that China and Russia are good neighbors, good friends, and companions in joint development, supporting each other. In 2026, the countries will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of their bilateral partnership and strategic cooperation and the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation.
Zhang Hanhui stated that, adhering to the spirit of eternal good-neighborliness, mutual benefit, and comprehensive strategic coordination, the Chinese side is willing to work with the Russian side to advance the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination in the new era to greater progress from a higher starting point, on a broader scale, and on a deeper basis.
“We will jointly implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative, and the Global Governance Initiative, promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity, make Sino-Russian contributions to safeguarding world peace and stability, promoting common prosperity, and opening up a brighter and more beautiful future for humanity,” the Chinese diplomat concluded.
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