China Praises Putin Visit And Bilateral Cooperation
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing resulted in ‘friendly and fruitful’ talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.
“China is willing to work with Russia to fully implement the important consensus reached by our two heads of state, fully seize the historic opportunities, and ensure that the foundation of mutual trust between our two countries grows ever stronger, our cooperation becomes ever more substantial, and the path of friendship between our two nations grows ever broader, thereby better benefiting the peoples of both countries,” he added.
On Wednesday, the long-stalled Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline was also on the agenda for the China-Russia talks.
“China and Russia maintain close cooperation in various fields, including energy,” the spokesperson noted.
During Putin’s two-day visit to Beijing, the two nations signed over 40 cooperation agreements in various areas such as trade, education, and science and technology.
Beijing Responds To North Korea Visit Reports
Guo also commented on reports suggesting Xi is set to visit the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) next week, saying the government has ‘no information to provide’.
“China and North Korea are socialist friendly neighbours. Our two parties and two countries have a long-standing tradition of friendly exchanges, which serves the interests of both nations and contributes to regional peace and stability,” he stated.
China Opposes US Taiwan Weapons Plans
In response to US President Donald Trump’s remarks on plans to sell weapons to Taiwan, the spokesperson reiterated that China ‘firmly opposes’ the move.
“China urges the US side to fully implement the important consensus reached at the China-US leaders’ meeting, honor the commitments and statements made, handle the Taiwan issue with the utmost caution, cease sending erroneous signals to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces, and take concrete actions to safeguard peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as well as the stable development of China-US relations,” he added.
Taiwan Issue Remains Central To US-China Relations
This comes after Trump’s historic visit to China, where Xi warned that mishandling Taiwan could push the two countries towards ‘clashes and even conflicts.
At the state banquet, the Chinese leader called on the US not to ‘mess up’ their relationship. Trump also risked insulting his hosts by telling them ‘American travellers to China helped spread literacy and modern medicine’ – although he did thank Xi effusively for the visit.
Article by Viory
