MOSCOW. Feb 22 (Interfax) - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi told his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow on Friday that he plans to discuss preparations for the Chinese president's visit to Russia in detail.
"The main goal of my visit to Russia is to jointly lay the political groundwork for a state visit to Russia by China's president at the invitation of President [Vladimir] Putin, as well as our presidents' joint participation in a meeting of BRICS leaders," Yang said.
He thanked the Russian side for the opportunity to meet with Putin.
"The comprehensive strategic partnership and cooperation of China and Russia has been developing rapidly and persistently over these years thanks to our leaders' care and attention," the Chinese minister said.
Lavrov, for his part, welcomed Yang's plans to discuss preparations for the Chinese president's visit to Russia.
"I hope that during our negotiations today, we will be able to discuss the issues we need to tackle ahead of the visit," he said.