Foreign news

Xi, Putin sign joint statement on deepening comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era

Published

2 years ago

March 22, 2023

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin jointly signed and released here on Tuesday the Joint Statement of the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation on Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of Coordination for the New Era at the Kremlin in Moscow.

In the statement, the two sides pointed out that China-Russia relations are not the kind of military-political alliance during the Cold War, but transcend such a model of state-to-state relations and have the nature of no-alliance, no-confrontation and not targeting any third party.

They said that different countries have different histories, cultures and national conditions, and they all have the right to choose their own development path. There is no such a thing as a superior “democracy.” The Russian side highly regards the Global Civilization Initiative proposed by the Chinese side.

The Russian side in the statement reaffirms its adherence to the one-China principle, recognizes Taiwan as an inalienable part of Chinese territory, opposes any form of “Taiwan independence,” and firmly supports China’s measures to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Both sides agree to strengthen cooperation in law enforcement such as preventing the “color revolution,” and cracking down on the “three forces” including the “East Turkistan Islamic Movement,” transnational organized crime, economic crime and drug crime.

The two, according to the statement, will build a closer partnership for energy cooperation, support enterprises of both sides in promoting energy cooperation projects such as oil and gas, coal, electricity and nuclear energy, and promote the implementation of initiatives that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including the use of low-emission energy and renewable energy.

They will also jointly safeguard international energy security including the security of key cross-border infrastructure, and maintain the stability of industry and supply chains of energy products.

Russia spoke highly of the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and will continue to participate in the work of the Group of Friends of the GDI.

The two countries call on an objective, impartial and professional investigation into the explosion of the Nord Stream pipeline, said the statement, adding that they jointly oppose the attempt to politicize origin tracing of viruses.

China and Russia express serious concerns about the consequences and risks of the trilateral security partnership – AUKUS and related nuclear-powered submarine cooperation programs among the United States, Britain and Australia on regional strategic stability.

The two sides strongly urge AUKUS members to strictly fulfill their obligations of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, and safeguard regional peace, stability and development.

They also express serious concern about Japan’s plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident into the sea this year, and stressed that Japan must conduct transparent and full consultations with neighboring countries and other stakeholders and relevant international agencies.

The two sides urged Japan to properly handle the nuclear-contaminated water in a scientific, transparent and safe manner, and accept the long-term supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency and related countries, so as to effectively protect the marine environment and the rights to health of people of all countries.

Also in the statement, the two sides expressed serious concern about the biological military activities of the United States, both inside and outside the country, which seriously threaten other countries and undermine the security of relevant regions. They demand that the United States make clarification on this, and refrain from carrying out all biological activities that violate the Biological Weapons Convention.

The two sides urge NATO to abide by its commitments as a regional and defensive organization, and call on NATO to respect the sovereignty, security, interests as well as diversity of civilizations, history and culture of other countries, and treat their peaceful development in an objective and fair manner.

They also express serious concern about NATO’s continuous strengthening of military security ties with Asian-Pacific countries and undermining regional peace and stability. The two sides oppose piecing together a closed and exclusive group structure in the region, and stirring group politics and camp confrontation.

China and Russia, said the statement, express concern over the situation in the Korean Peninsula, and urge the U.S. side to respond to the legitimate and reasonable concerns of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with practical actions and create conditions for the resumption of dialogues.

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Foreign news

EU Cautiously optimistic on Syria engagement – Official

Published

7 days ago

January 28, 2025

The Gleamer

Irish foreign minister Simon Harris said on Monday that the European Union (EU) “is cautiously optimistic on Syria engagement” but called for more deeper engagement to strengthen relations with the country.

Harris said this at a news conference held at the EU Headquarters in Brussels, the Belgian capital.
“It’s early days, but I think there are signs of optimism. But it is important that we continue to engage.

“I don’t think it would be a good scenario if any other geopolitical actors and forces engage with Syria and for the European Union not to be in a position to intensively engage with them,“ he said.

In her remarks, Ms. Kaja Kallas, the Vice-President of the EU described Syria’s future as fragile but said that the bloc needed to take the right steps.
“But of course, we need to see the right steps as well. Right now, they’re saying all the right words, and they are doing also the right things.

“Therefore, we have this set step-for-step approach, and if they take the steps, then we are willing to take the steps as well,’’ she said.

On the war in Gaza, Harris said President Donald Trump and his team are very much a party to the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas after the intensive work that was put in.

He conceded that the Trump administration put in a lot of effort to arrive at a ceasefire agreement in the days before his assumption of office for a return to the White House.

“I think that was important and there is no doubt that the intensive work invested by the Trump administration played a very significant role in helping to bring about a ceasefire – a ceasefire that has now seen a cessation of hostilities, the killing, and the bombings.

“Also, that has seen the flow and has seen hostages being released. It’s really important that the ceasefire is in place.

“It is also important, though, to acknowledge in that ceasefire agreement itself, it does talk about people being able to return, and therefore, I think it’s important that we’re consistent in the approach that we take.

“The priority, I think, needs to be on implementing to the letter, the ceasefire agreement.”

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