Putin congratulates Xi on his 70th birthday, praises strong relations
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President Putin praises President Xi's efforts to strengthen the comprehensive relations between the two countries.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes Chinese President Xi Jinping's hand as he welcomes him to The Grand Kremlin Palace, in Moscow, Russia, March 21 2023. (AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated the President of the People's Republic of China, Xi Jinping, on his 70th birthday.
In the message he wrote to the Chinese President, Putin told Xi, "It is difficult to overestimate the efforts that you have been making for many years to strengthen the relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction" between Russia and China, whose relations grew even stronger after the collective West imposed sanctions on Russian various industries.
Putin added, "I look forward to continuing our constructive dialogue and close joint work on topical issues on the bilateral, regional, and international agenda for the benefit of the peoples of Russia and China."
The Russian President also pointed to the high political authority that Xi enjoys in China, which reflects the popular support that the Chinese President garners.
"Under your leadership, the People's Republic of China achieved impressive successes: the economy is showing steady growth, the well-being of citizens is increasing, and Beijing's position in the world is strengthening," the telegram published by the Kremlin read.
The two countries were able to successfully expand bilateral trading surpassing Western sanctions, which aimed to crumble the Russian economy.
Chinese-Russian trading volume rises
In 2022, China's trade surplus increased by 30% since 2021, reaching an all-time high of $877.6 billion and placing the country in first place in the global trade surplus. Russia followed suit moving up to second position among big economies after increasing its surplus by 1.7 times over the course of the year to a record $333.4 billion, as per Sputnik calculations based on data from national statistics.
Furthermore, Trade between Russia and China saw significant growth in the period of January to May 2023, surpassing the growth rate of 2022. The trade volume between the two countries increased by 40.7% to reach $93.8 billion, according to data released by the Chinese General Administration of Customs on June 7.
In the first five months of 2023, China's exports to Russia amounted to $42.9 billion, marking a hefty year-on-year increase of 75.6%. Meanwhile, Russia's exports to China grew by 20.4% to $50.8 billion.
In May this year, the bilateral trade reached $20.5 billion, with Russia exporting goods worth $11.3 billion to China, while China's exports to Russia reached $9.2 billion.
In March, the two heads of state signed two joint strategic documents aiming to boost the two global powers' economic and diplomatic partnership which has manifested in substantial trade growth.
China and Russia are also integral members of the BRICS group which currently accounts for 31.5% of global GDP overtaking the G7 countries which contributed to 30% of the GDP.
