Cooperation deals signed during Putin’s China visit

By Mahmut Atanur

BEIJING (AA) – More than 30 cooperation agreements were signed Saturday as Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Chinese capital.

Putin and his counterpart Xi Jinping witnessed the inking of the deals in various fields including economy and trade, foreign affairs, finance, technology and innovation, infrastructure and energy, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported.

After holding talks earlier in the day, Putin and Xi signed a joint statement pledging to enhance global strategic stability.

In an interview with Xinhua ahead of the Beijing visit -- Putin's fourth since Xi took office in 2013 – the Russian leader had underlined that both countries are working to diversify trade and exploring new areas of cooperation despite global challenges.

"We see each other as close allies, so of course we always listen to each other -- by this I mean we keep each other's interests in mind," he told the agency.

He had downplayed the recent decline in bilateral trade between the countries, describing the situation as a “temporary downtick” stemming from global economic concerns and differences in exchange rates.