President Hu Jintao yesterday expressed his appreciation at the establishment of the China-Russia strategic consultation mechanism and spoke highly of the effective dialogue and consultation carried out within the framework.

Hu made the remarks while meeting with visiting Russian Security Council Secretary Igor Ivanov.

The China-Russia strategic and cooperative partnership has improved at various levels and in an all-round way in recent years, Hu said, noting that frequent exchanges between the two state leaders have boosted mutual trust and friendship.

The two sides have established effective cooperation in political, economic, trade, humanitarian, regional and international issues, notching up remarkable progress, Hu said. He added the cooperation demonstrates that China-Russia strategic cooperation has reached a high level, and that the partnership has entered a new stage of development.

Hu expressed his hope that the two sides play larger roles in the strategic security consultation mechanism in order to implement the consensus reached by the two state leaders. This will bring mutual benefits, a win-win situation and common prosperity, he said.

Ivanov highlighted the high-level political dialogue between Russia and China. Frequent meetings between the two state leaders have fostered bilateral ties and given new impetus to Russia-China relations, he said.

Russia and China have made concerted efforts when facing world challenges and will play very important roles as the world undergoes transformation, Ivanov said.

He also voiced his hope that Russia will be able to cement coordination and cooperation with China in the strategic security arena.

(Xinhua News Agency October 22, 2005)