President Xi Jinping met with Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko in Beijing on Tuesday, calling for closer legislative cooperation between the two countries.

Xi said the overall strategic coordination partnership between China and Russia has entered a new historic stage, referring to three meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin this year.

The two countries will work together to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II next year, he said.

The legislatures of the two nations can make joint efforts through multilateral parliamentary organizations to safeguard the outcomes of the war as well as the postwar international order, Xi added.

He said he and Putin have agreed to expand and enhance practical cooperation between the countries.

He called for the Russian Federation Council to play an active role in overseeing the implementation of the deals signed, to provide legal guarantees for projects under discussion and to provide more convenience for interactions between companies and people from China and Russia.

Xi also asked Matviyenko to convey his greetings to Putin, saying he looks forward to the Russian president attending the 2014 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders' Meeting in Beijing in November.

Matviyenko said the Russia-China partnership stands at an "unprecedented height", with closer communication between the two presidents.

Premier Li Keqiang also met with Matviyenko on Tuesday and said he hopes his visit to Russia next month will further boost relations between the two countries.

Matviyenko was in Beijing to co-chair the eighth meeting of a cooperation committee between China's National People's Congress and the Russian Federation Council, with Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the NPC Standing Committee. They signed regulations on deepening legislative cooperation.

Under the new regulations, the two legislative bodies will work more closely, set up a new cooperation committee, explore fresh ways to cooperate and take legislative ties to a new high, Zhang said.

Zhang proposed that both sides share experience and provide legal guarantees for the common development of the two countries.

He called for the two legislative bodies to enhance communication and coordination on major international and regional issues, make better use of multilateral cooperation mechanisms, safeguard shared interests and promote world peace and stability.

Matviyenko said the Russian Federation Council wants to work with the NPC to explore new opportunities for cooperation.

Xinhua - China Daily

(China Daily 09/24/2014 page3)