China's top legislator Wu Bangguo arrived in Moscow Wednesday, kicking off an official goodwill visit to Russia as the two countries strive to have closer cooperation in face of the worsening global financial crisis.

Wu Bangguo (L front), chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) of China, is greeted upon his arrival in Moscow, capital of Russia, May 13, 2009. [Li Tao/Xinhua]

Wu, chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), said in a written speech released upon his arrival that under the joint effort of both sides, China-Russia relations have maintained a strong momentum of growth and reached an unprecedented level.  

Wu said as the two countries are to celebrate the 60th anniversary of establishing diplomatic links this year, his visit will achieve the aim of improving political trust, enhancing friendship of the two peoples and deepening mutually beneficial cooperation. He expressed the willingness to push for a long-term, healthy and stable growth of China-Russia strategic partnership of cooperation.

Wu is the first Chinese leader who visited Russia this year. His visit comes before a planned state visit by Chinese President Hu Jintao to Russia next month.

In the past 12 months, top leaders of the two countries have maintained close and frequent contact, trying to build a closer relationship against the background of fast changes in global situation.

President Hu Jintao and Russian President Dmitri Medvedev have met five times since last May. In their meeting during the G20 summit in London in April, Hu said against the current background of complicated and ever changing international situation and spreading financial crisis, strengthening China-Russia relations has become extraordinarily imperative and important.

This was the third visit that Wu Bangguo had made to Russia in the past few years. During his stay in Moscow, Wu is to meet with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev to exchange views on bilateral relations and other regional and international issues of common concern.

Trade and economic cooperation are expected to be topics of the meetings. After rapid growth in straight eight years, bilateral trade witnessed slowdown in the first two months of this year due to the impact of global financial storm. The two countries are striving to maintain bilateral trade at a stable level this year as two-way trade soared to a record high of more than 50 billion US dollars in 2008.

Wu is also scheduled to meet with Russian Federation Council Chairman Sergei Mironov and State Duma Chairman Boris Gryzlov, and attend the third meetings of the cooperation committees between China's NPC and the two chambers of Russian parliament respectively. Parliamentary exchanges consist an important part of the China-Russia partnership of strategic cooperation. China's NPChas set up cooperation committees with both chambers of the Russian parliament. Wu, as well as Mironov and Gryzlov, serves as chairmen of the two committees, the highest ranking of its kind that the NPC has set up with foreign parliaments.

Russia is the first leg of Wu's three-nation Europe tour, which will also take him to Austria and Italy.

(Xinhua News Agency May 14, 2009)