China hopes to continue high-level contacts with Russia this year, foreign ministry says

BEIJING, February 14. /TASS/. China’s government expects to continue top-level contacts with Russia this year and further bolster bilateral relations. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang said at Wednesday’s briefing that China would welcome participation of a newly elected Russian president at a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit that will be held this June. "Russia is an important SCO member state. We will welcome participation of a newly elected Russian president in the summit," he stressed. "As for any visits, the heads of the two states are maintaining close contact through bilateral and multilateral meetings, written messages and telephone calls. This shows high level of bilateral relations," the diplomat noted. "We are confident that these contacts will continue this year, which will help further develop relations of comprehensive strategic partnership and cooperation between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China," Geng Shuang concluded. Russian Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov earlier told Russian reporters that the SCO summit is due on June 9 in China’s coastal city of Qingdao in the eastern Shandong Province. "The summit is preceded by various preparatory activities, including several ministerial meetings," the Russian diplomat noted. He named meetings between foreign ministers, defense ministers, security council secretaries and economic ministers as obligatory. Read more