China, Russia, Mongolia vow to strengthen trilateral cooperation

AKIPRESS.COM - Presidents of China, Russia and Mongolia pledged to strengthen trilateral cooperation during their meeting here on Friday, Xinhua reports. The trilateral meeting, the fifth of its kind, among Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mongolian President Khaltmaa Battulga was held on the sidelines of the 19th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.
Since the last gathering of the heads of state in China's eastern port city of Qingdao last year, the three sides have maintained close communication and cooperation, and the trilateral cooperation has gradually developed, said Xi.
Against the backdrop of rising protectionism and unilateralism, the three countries need to firmly promote regional cooperation and achieve common development, he said.
They should focus on the alignment of the three countries' development strategies, promote comprehensive cooperation in all fields, and jointly release the positive signal of maintaining multilateralism and creating an open world economy, said Xi.
Putin said Russia is committed to deepening its relations with China and Mongolia on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, and is ready to step up cooperation to promote the synergy between the Eurasian Economic Union, the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, and Mongolia's Steppe Road program.
Battulga said it is Mongolia's unswerving policy to deepen the friendly cooperation with China and Russia, adding that his country is committed to pushing forward the trilateral cooperation and the construction of the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor.
He called on the three sides to set up institutional arrangements so as to accelerate the construction of a network of cross-border highways, facilitate customs clearance, strengthen energy cooperation, and discuss the construction of regional power grids.