Interest in the Party National Congress is high in China's neighbor, Russia.

S.M. Mironov, Chairman of Russian Federation Council, said, "I extend my best wishes to all delegates of the 17th CPC National Congress, and wish all the party members a successful conference. I believe this conference will figure out a plan, to further consolidate the the social economy status, and to improve the people's living standard."

Sinologist Sergei Tikhvinskii said, "All over China, people are looking forward to the congress opening. In my opinion, the congress should focus on social affairs, such as how to improve the people's living standard since this has drawn wide attention. I think the CPC can well deal with the matter, not only to build a well-off society in an all-round way, but an even better one."

Gennady Zyuganov, President of Communist Party of Russian Federation, said, "I believe, the wise Chinese Communist Party will continue its reform, to further improve the living standard of the people, and to maintain the country's stability and security, and to improve their international prestige. The 17th CPC National Congress will play an important role in China's development."

Renat Abdullin, Vice President of Interfax News Agency, said, "Interfax will attach great importance to the decisions made in the 17th CPC National Congress. We have sent many reporters to Beijing for the event. Roughly we have about 40 reports about China every day. We pay about twice as much attention for the congress, especially the reports of President Hu Jintao. We are interested in the core issues of the congress, mainly the concept of scientific development, a matter of great interest to Russian society. That's because China and Russia are both undergoing reform, and Russia values China's experience in this aspect."

(CCTV October 16, 2007)