Russian Federation Council Chairwoman Valentina Matviyenko Photo: VCG

At the invitation of Zhao Leji, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) of China, Russian Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko and her delegation were scheduled to visit China from Sunday to Wednesday and attend the eighth meeting of the China-Russia committee for parliamentary cooperation, according to Xinhua.

Experts said that exchanges of the China-Russia committee for parliamentary cooperation are part of the inter-parliamentary cooperation mechanism between the two countries, demonstrating the continuity and stability of China-Russia relations, which will not be disturbed by some special events.

While some Western media outlets are over-interpreting the importance of the meeting, this visit is anticipated to focus on legislative matters and issues concerning the experience of both sides in social and national governance, Zhang Hong, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday.

"This shows that the development of China-Russia relations is multi-level and all-round," Zhang noted.

The lasting, deep and effective exchanges between the legislatures of both sides will ensure strong coherence and lasting popular support for the overall policy of future cooperation between China and Russia, Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

The exchange and communication with the Russian Federation Council is an important component of the continuous strategic level of relations between the two sides, so as to ensure that China and Russia will always maintain a high-quality, high level and high expectations of cooperation mode in the current and future, Li said.

In March when Chinese President Xi Jinping paid his state visit to Russia, Xi said that China and Russia are each other's biggest neighbors and comprehensive strategic partners of coordination, stressing that there is a profound historical logic for China-Russia relationship to reach where it is today.

Also, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu held talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko in Beijing last month. The two sides discussed bilateral relations between the two countries and exchanged views on the Ukraine crisis. 

Separately, Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu met with Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, in Beijing earlier this month.

The Wagner Group incident does not have much direct connection with the development of China-Russia relations, and both sides are willing and have a demand to develop China-Russia relations, which is determined by historical experience, experts stressed.

The lasting, deep and effective exchanges between the legislatures of both sides will ensure strong coherence and lasting popular support for the overall policy of future cooperation between China and Russia, Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

The exchange and communication with the Russian Federation Council is an important component of the continuous strategic level of relations between the two sides, so as to ensure that China and Russia will always maintain a high-quality, high level and high expectations of cooperation mode in the current and future, Li said.

During the seventh meeting held on November 23, 2021, Li Zhanshu, then chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, pointed out that China and Russia need to continue focusing on maintaining the political security of the two countries and demonstrate mutual support on issues involving one another's core interests through targeted legislation.

He also urged the provision of more complete legal support for the promotion of synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian Economic Union, and called for closer coordination within multilateral frameworks.