Xi sends New Year greetings to Putin

China and Russia are moving forward hand-in-hand along the right path, Xi Jinping said in his message

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have exchanged New Year greetings.

In his message, Xi extended his “best wishes to Putin and the Russian people,” the State Council of the People’s Republic of China said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Chinese leader noted that 2024 had marked the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Moscow and Beijing, which “have grown more mature and stable” over the intervening period.

“In face of accelerating transformation unseen in a century and a volatile international landscape, China and Russia always move forward hand-in-hand along the right path of non-alliance, non-confrontation, and not targeting any third party,” he said.

Xi noted that he had met Putin face-to-face three times and maintained regular contact through other means this year, having “candid exchanges of views and reach[ing] broad consensus on bilateral relations and major international and regional issues of common concern.”

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Under the guidance of the Chinese and Russian leaders, “political mutual trust and strategic coordination between the two sides have been advancing toward higher levels,” he wrote.

Cooperation between Beijing and Moscow within BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is “contributing significantly to solidarity and cooperation among the Global South,” the Chinese leader said.

The “good-neighborly friendship” and comprehensive strategic coordination between the two nations is “injecting strong momentum into [their] development and modernization... safeguarding international fairness and justice,” he added.

Xi expressed readiness to continue exchanges with Putin in order to deepen China-Russia ties even further.

The Kremlin said on Monday that Xi was among 30 foreign leaders to whom Putin had sent greetings ahead of the New Year. It did not disclose the content of the Russian president’s message to his Chinese counterpart.

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Top officials from India, Brazil, South Africa, Hungary, Venezuela, Vietnam, North Korea, Türkiye, and Serbia also received greetings from Putin, according to the Kremlin.