Moscow, 3 Mar (ZXS) -- On the afternoon of 20 March local time, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Moscow by special plane to pay a state visit to Russia at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
At about 1 p.m. local time, Xi Jinping's special plane arrived at Moscow's Vnukovo airport. When Xi Jinping stepped out of the cabin door, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Cherneshenko and other senior government officials warmly greeted him by the gangway.
The Russian side held a grand welcoming ceremony at the airport. The military band plays the national anthems of China and Russia. Xi Jinping inspects the honor guard of Russia's three services and watches the parade.
Xi Jinping delivered a written speech on behalf of the Chinese government and Chinese people, extending sincere greetings and best wishes to the Russian government and people. Xi Jinping stressed that China and Russia are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers. The two sides have adhered to the principle of non-alignment, non-confrontation and non-targeting of third parties in consolidating and developing bilateral relations, setting a model for a new type of major-country relations. The achievements of the development of China-Russia relations have brought tangible benefits to the two peoples and made important contributions to world development and progress.
Xi Jinping pointed out that China and Russia are both major world powers and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and play an important role in international affairs. In the face of a turbulent and changing world, China is willing to continue to work with Russia to firmly uphold the international system with the United Nations at its core, the international order based on international law and the basic norms governing international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, adhere to true multilateralism, promote world multipolarization and democracy in international relations, and promote the development of global governance in a more just and rational direction. It is believed that this visit will certainly achieve fruitful results and inject new impetus into the healthy and stable development of the comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination between China and Russia in the new era.
Cai Qi, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission, Qin Gang, state councilor and minister of foreign affairs, and other accompanying personnel arrived on the same plane.
Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui also greeted him at the airport. (End)