🎙 Opening remarks by Foreign Minister of Russia Sergey Lavrov during talks with Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi on the sidelines of the 7th CICA Summit (Baku, October 14, 2026)

💬 Sergey Lavrov: We are very pleased to meet again on the sidelines of the Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (#CICA).

We met quite recently in Cholpon-Ata at the meeting of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers.

Since then, the international situation has become no less complex, both in the Middle East and in other regions. This is an excellent opportunity to exchange views on how Russia and China will continue to fulfil the tasks set by our Leaders to build on the Treaty of Good-Neighbourliness and Friendly Cooperation, whose 25th anniversary we celebrated in July this year.

🤝 Our Leaders remain in regular contact and oversee the development of our comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation across all areas.

President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of China Xi Jinping have met twice this year: in May, during the Russian Leader’s official visit to China, and in August, in Bishkek, on the sidelines of the meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of State.

Next month, President Vladimir Putin will visit Shenzhen to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit. He is, of course, looking forward to another conversation with his colleague and friend, President Xi Jinping.

📈 Our economic cooperation is developing well. According to our data, bilateral trade grew by 25% in the first eight months of this year. There is no doubt that our trade will reach another record high this year.

On the international stage, the strategic partnership between Moscow and Beijing has repeatedly demonstrated its important stabilising role. Our positions on most regional, international and global issues coincide or are very close.

This is reflected in our work at the #UN, including our participation as permanent members in the work of the UN Security Council, this vitally important body. It is also evident in the #SCO, #BRICS, #APEC, the #G20, our partnership formats with #ASEAN and many other platforms, where our Ministries must continue to work with growing enthusiasm and greater effectiveness.

👉 The international situation demands it.

🇷🇺🇨🇳 #RussiaChina