Basic facts about China-Russia relations

BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping starts his first state visit to Russia on Friday. Following are some basic facts about China-Russia relations:

On December 27, 1991, China and Russia signed a memo to ensure Russia would inherit the diplomatic relations the Soviet Union and China established on October 2, 1949.

In December 1992, China and Russia signed a joint statement on the foundation for bilateral ties, calling for China and Russia to regard each other as "friendly countries."

In September 1994, China and Russia signed the second joint statement, announcing the two countries are resolved to establish a constructive partnership with a perspective towards the 21st century.

The two sides also signed a series of important agreements, including a joint declaration to the effect that the two countries will not be the first to use nuclear weapons against each other and shall end the targeting of each other with strategic nuclear weapons.

In April 1996, the two countries declared the establishment of a partnership of strategic coordination based on equality and trust and oriented towards the 21st century.

In July 2001, China and Russia signed the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, which has laid a strong legal foundation for the two countries to develop a strategic partnership.

In May 2003, the two countries signed a joint statement in which both sides agreed to develop good-neighborly and friendly relations and a strategic partnership.

In October 2004, the two sides signed a joint statement and approved the guidelines for implementing the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, which stipulated that the two countries would launch a "Year of Russia" in China in 2006 and a "Year of China" in Russia in 2007.

In June 2005, China and Russia exchanged the ratification of the Supplementary Agreement on the Eastern Section of the China-Russia Boundary Line, ending border problems between the two countries.

In June 2009, the two countries signed a joint statement and approved the program for China-Russia investment cooperation planning.

In September 2009, China and Russia approved the program on planning for regional cooperation between China's northeastern region and Russia's far east and eastern Siberia region (2009-2018).

In September 2010, the two sides signed the China-Russia joint statement on comprehensively deepening strategic partnership of coordination, and also published a joint statement on the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II.

In June 2011, the two countries issued a joint statement on a broad range of key international issues.