Putin holds discussions with Chinese President

The Russian President who arrived in Beijing on a two-day state visit is expected to sign a series of documents on bilateral cooperation.

Chinese President Hu Jintao and visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin began talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Tuesday.

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In his opening address, Hu said this year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination and the fifth anniversary of the Sino-Russian good neighbourly treaty of friendship and cooperation.

"The fact that President Putin is heading such a big delegation to China and will attend the opening ceremony of the "Year of Russia in China" demonstrates that Putin highly values the Sino-Russian relations," he said.

"I believe this visit, especially the hosting of the theme year in the other's country, will enhance the mutual understanding between the two peoples and advance the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination," Hu added.

Echoing Hu's remarks, Putin said that the start of the "Year of Russia in China", which is unprecedented in scale and involves activities in various fields, shows that the current Russia-China relations have reached "a very high level, and laid a better foundation for the future development of the Russia-China relations."

Hu and Putin also held a closed-door meeting before their official talks.

Putin arrived in Beijing on Tuesday morning for a two-day state visit at the invitation of the Chinese President.

It is his second visit to China after being re-elected as Russian president in 2004.

The two countries are expected to sign a series of documents on bilateral cooperation.