$250 billion trade turnover with China to be reached soon: Kremlin

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Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that the new objective of $250 billion in the annual commercial transaction between Moscow and Beijing will be reached soon.

Regarding possible timing for reaching this goal, he added, "China is our great ally and trade and economic partner. We will develop this cooperation. The target of 250 billion [dollars] is absolutely realistic. We hope that it will be reached and overcome in the near future."

At the same time, the Kremlin official stressed that no precise dates have been specified.

He also stated that trade between the two nations is developing rapidly, which is "encouraging for both Moscow and Beijing."

"The coverage is expanding, and the number of areas of engagement and collaboration is continually multiplying," said the President of the Russian Federation's press secretary.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Peskov said that the enlargement of the Russian army to 1.5 million military people is the result of Western actions since Russia's security must be guaranteed unconditionally.

"This is due to the war that the countries of the collective West are waging, a proxy war that includes both elements of indirect participation in hostilities and elements of economic war, financial war, legal war, going beyond the legal field, and so on. Such measures are related to this. The security of our country must be unconditionally ensured," Peskov told journalists.

In this context, the Kremlin Spokesperson denied that a second wave of Russian mobilization was planned in response to the conflict in Ukraine, claiming that rumors about an additional draft were coming from abroad.

"It [the rumor] is being artificially incited from abroad and inside the country. I recommend that you remember assurances given by President [Vladimir] Putin in this regard," Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Ukrainian media reported in early January that Russian border guard agencies had been instructed to stop men of military service age from leaving the country amid the military operation which was launched by Russia in Ukraine last February. Back then, Peskov rejected the reports as a "hoax" and "sabotage."

Putin assured Russians last month that no new conscription was planned. Russia called up 300,000 soldiers in September, of whom fewer than 80,000 have been put on the battlefield, according to Putin.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he stated that the dialogue between Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director Sergey Naryshkin and CIA Director William Burns is helpful, but there are no specific dates for any potential meetings at this time.

Responding to a question about whether a meeting between Naryshkin and Burns is being prepared, Peskov said, "It is especially impossible to exclude it [the meeting]. And, of course, such dialogue is beneficial. But I don't know about the exact dates."

In a different context, the Kremlin mentioned that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov tackled in a phone conversation the practical bilateral cooperation in the energy sector.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov. Highly appreciating the achieved level of the Russian-Turkmenistan strategic partnership, the heads of state discussed a number of specific issues of practical energy cooperation," the spokesperson added.

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