Foreign Ministry previews Xi's Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus visits

President Xi Jinping's upcoming visit to Russia, where he will attend a parade for the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII, will show the strength of China-Russia ties and their resolve to safeguard world peace, said Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping on Monday.

Xi will visit Russia from Friday to Sunday, attending a Victory Day parade on Saturday in Moscow's Red Square.

As well as the war anniversary, this year also marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the United Nations.

China and Russia, as the main Asian and European battlefields in WWII, victorious nations in that conflict and founding members of the United Nations, made great contributions to victory in WWII and post-war order, said Cheng at a news briefing on Xi's tour of Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus.

The two countries will jointly hold a series of celebrations within bilateral or multilateral frameworks this year in order to remember history and martyrs, cherish peace and shape the future, he said.

In Moscow, Xi will hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and meet with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

He will also meet with Russian WWII veterans and attend activities organized for the China-Russia Year of Youth Exchanges.

The two heads of state will ink a joint statement on strengthening the China-Russia partnership and advocating cooperation, according to Cheng.

They will also discuss the docking of China's Silk Road Economic Belt initiative with Russia's related idea for a trade and infrastructure network across Eurasia, as well as the development of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union, he said.

"The two leaders will define the priorities and direction of the future development of China-Russia ties and expound their propositions on maintaining the outcomes of WWII, promoting world peace and stability, abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and international order with the UN at the core, so as to build a new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation," the vice minister said.

With China remaining Russia's largest trade partner for a fifth consecutive year in 2014 and Russia being China's ninth-largest trade partner, economic cooperation will be another important topic for discussion.

Xi's visit will see the two countries sign a number of cooperative documents in areas including energy, aerospace, taxation, finance and investment, according to Cheng.

Before landing in Russia, Xi will begin his Kazakhstan visit on Thursday.

Cheng said the visit highlights the high level of trust between the two countries, and that Xi and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev "will jointly lay down a blueprint for mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries, including the joint construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and cooperation on big projects."

After Russia, Xi will make a two-day visit to Belarus, the first by a Chinese president in 14 years.

It will be of great significance in guiding the development of China-Belarus ties, Cheng said.

During the visit, Xi will hold talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and meet with Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov.

He will attend an economic and trade forum between local governments of the two countries and visit the China-Belarus industrial park, which is the largest cooperative project between the two sides.

The Chinese president will also visit the Belarusian State Museum of the Great Patriotic War and meet Belarusian WWII veterans.

The two heads of state are expected to sign a "treaty of friendship and cooperation" and issue a joint statement on deepening cooperation. ' Government departments and enterprises from the two countries will sign a stack of cooperative documents on the economy and trade, customs, education and culture, said Cheng. Endi