MOSCOW, January 30. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu met in Moscow and discussed issues including the situation in Ukraine and security across Eurasia, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"The sides discussed the current state of affairs in Ukraine. A trust-based exchange of views was held on the issues of ensuring security across the Eurasian space and the Asia-Pacific region. It was noted that there’s a shared confidence in the need for the earliest possible political and diplomatic settlement of the situation in the Middle East and the reduction of tension on the Korean Peninsula," the ministry said.
The ministry said emphasis during the meeting was given to the importance of improving the close coordination between Russia and China on the international stage, including the UN and its Security Council. It was also reaffirmed that both countries are determined to build closer ties in other international and regional organizations and fora, most of all, BRICS, given that Russia is holding presidency in the group in 2024.
"During Ma Zhaoxu's visit to Moscow on January 29, he met with Russian First Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Titov. They had an in-depth exchange of views on the current situation in the world, a wide range of regional and country-specific issues, interaction in multilateral formats," the ministry said. "The sides also discussed Ukrainian issues and the Palestinian-Israeli settlement."
The ministry said that Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko took part in the meeting. The Chinese diplomat is in Russia on a working visit.