Nuke-free peninsula remains leaders' goal

President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin head to the meeting to discuss global issues on Sunday. WU ZHIYI / CHINA DAILY

　　President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed on Sunday to stay committed to the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and to make their communication and coordination closer.

　　They reached the consensus during their fourth meeting this year shortly after Putin arrived in Xiamen, Fujian province, on Sunday afternoon to attend the BRICS Summit.

　　The two leaders agreed on properly handling the latest situation, in which Pyongyang conducted a nuclear test earlier in the day, according to a release by the Foreign Ministry.

　　Xi and Putin had an in-depth exchange of views on international and regional issues on Sunday.

　　Xi said China is ready to join hands with Russia to boost their ties, enhance their own development and jointly champion the peace and stability of the region and the world.

　　Putin said it is greatly important for both countries to strengthen their contacts and coordination on major international and regional issues.

　　As a sign of strong bilateral mutual trust, Xi and Putin talked in May in Beijing, June in Astana, Kazakhstan, and July in Moscow.

　　In a look to his state visit to Russia in July, Xi said the visit was a success and the two sides are now realizing the consensus he and Putin made at that time and pushing for new progress in various areas of cooperation.

　　Xi said the two countries should further advance cooperative programs in areas such as energy, aviation and aerospace and nuclear energy, and gear up synergy in areas such as connectivity.

　　China has been Russia's largest trade partner for seven consecutive years, and bilateral trade reached $46.8 billion in the first seven months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 21.8 percent, according to Chinese Ambassador to Russia Li Hui.

　　On cooperation among the five BRICS countries, Xi said they should jointly send positive signals to the outside world, plan the direction and priorities of cooperation, boost their influence in global affairs and make their cooperation steady and lasting.

　　After their talk, Xi and Putin visited an exhibition of southern Fujian's intangible cultural heritage.