Chinese Premier arrives in Russia for official visit

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived here on November 5 to begin a two-day official visit to Russia at the invitation of Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov.

Wen is expected to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and hold the 12th regular prime ministers' talks with his Russian counterpart Viktor Zubkov, during which issues concerning bilateral relations, the regional and international situation and other issues of common concern will be touched upon, a source at the Chinese Foreign Ministry told Xinhua.

Wen will also deliver a speech at a China-Russia high-level economic forum and attend the closing ceremony of the year-long program "China Year" in Russia, the source added.

In a written statement delivered at the airport, Wen highlighted the stable development of the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination, saying that the growth of bilateral relations has already brought concrete benefits to the two peoples and contributes to safeguarding peace and stability in the region and the world at large.

"The Chinese government highly values relations with Russia and my visit is aimed at establishing in-depth and candid exchange of views with the Russian leadership on promoting bilateral cooperation in various fields and stepping up the partnership to a higher level," Wen said.

This is the final leg of Wen's four-nation visit. Wen has already paid official visits to Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Belarus and attended the sixth Meeting of Prime Ministers of the Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

Source: Xinhua