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Top Chinese, Russian officials meet to upgrade security ties
June 5, 2014, 5:18 pm

Meng Jianzhu (R), a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the CPC Central Committee, and Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev attend the first meeting of a cooperative mechanism on security and law enforcement between China and Russia, in Beijing, capital of China, June 5, 2014 [Xinhua]

Meng Jianzhu (R), a Politburo member of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee met Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev in Beijing, China, June 5, 2014 [Xinhua]

Following the directives of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Chinese and Russian officials held their first meeting of “institutionalized cooperation” in law enforcement and security in Beijing on Thursday morning. Putin and Xi have both vowed to establish a new security architecture in the Asia Pacific.

In Beijing, Xi’s envoy Meng Jianzhu, head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev discussed ways to upgrade security cooperation, state media reported.

Meng Jianzhu is a member of the Politburo, the 25-member body which reports to the elite Politburo Standing Committee.

The cooperation mechanism on law enforcement and security is “an important step” to implement the consensus between the two heads of state, said Meng.

“Law enforcement, security and judicial departments in both countries should have more efficient and practical cooperation, work together to address threats and challenges, and enrich the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination,” he said.

Russia is willing to work with China to implement the leaders’ consensus and contribute more to the security and development of the two countries, Patrushev said.

Putin and Xi are eyeing deeper coordination in the international arena in the backdrop of the Obama administration’s thrust on the much-hyped Asia Pivot and what Beijing alleges is it’s “China containment” policy.

Putin has earlier said the Sino-Russian partnership has reached “the highest level in all its centuries-long history”.

Chinese and Russian navies held a week-long joint naval drills in the East China Sea off Shanghai coinciding with Putin’s visit to China last month.

A total of 14 vessels, two submarines, nine fixed-wing aircraft as well as helicopters and special forces took part in the “Joint Sea-2014? exercise.

Meanwhile, Beijing has made its dissatisfaction clear at a UNSC meet last month over the international community’s sluggish response in treating Xinjiang violence as “terrorism”.

Five suicide bombers carried out a deadly attack which killed 31 people in Urumqi, the capital of China’s restive Xinjiang region last month.

The US had up until the latest incident refrained from branding the Uyghur separatists in Xinjiang as “terrorists”. More than 180 people have died in China over the past one year in terror attacks.

 

 TBP and Agencies