MOSCOW. April 18 (Interfax) - Interaction between Russia and China has a stabilizing effect on the global situation and helps reduce tensions, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said during negotiations with his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu in Moscow on Tuesday.
"Coordination of our efforts on the world stage has a stabilizing effect on the international situation and helps reduce the potential for conflict," Shoigu said.
"Importantly, our countries assess the essence of the current transformation of the global geopolitical landscape in the same way," Shoigu said.
Russia and China are coordinating their efforts as they prepare for joint marine and air patrols and military exercises, which will be held in bilateral and multilateral formats as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and ADMM-Plus (a mechanism for interaction between the defense ministries of ten ASEAN nations and nine dialogue partners, including Russia, China and the United States), he said.
"I have no doubts that today's meeting will further strengthen the Russian-Chinese strategic defense partnership, and will allow [us to have] a frank discussion about current issues in global and regional security," Shoigu said.
Earlier in the day, the Chinese military delegation led by Defense Minister Li laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by the Moscow Kremlin's wall.