Russian President Vladimir Putin says his county will step up cooperation with China in advanced technology, amid restrictions on Russia’s imports of high-tech products from the West.
Putin attended the opening ceremony of a trade expo in Harbin in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang on Friday. The expo is organized by Beijing and Moscow.
Putin was on a tour of China from Thursday, the first foreign visit since he began his new term in office.
Delivering a speech, he said the countries will deepen cooperation in cutting-edge technologies and innovations to unite their scientific and research potentials. He added that this is necessary to take a leading position and raise their competitiveness in the global economy.
The joint statement with Chinese President Xi Jinping released on Thursday says the countries will expand cooperation in wide areas, including artificial intelligence and communication technologies.
China’s Foreign Ministry reports that Xi told Putin at a meeting on Thursday that China supports the convening of an international peace conference recognized by Russia and Ukraine at an appropriate time with equal participation and fair discussion of all options. Xi also reportedly said China will continue to play a constructive role for an early political settlement of the Ukraine issue.
The ministry also says Putin appreciated Xi’s idea and expressed intention to maintain close communication with China on the matter.