Chinese President Jiang Zemin and Russian
President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a good- neighborly
treaty of friendship and cooperation. The
treaty will function as a legal document guiding the steady
development of Sino-Russian relations in the new century and
will have a deep and far-reaching impact on the
long-term steady development of the bilateral
ties. The following are details of the
treaty: China and Russia will develop the
strategic cooperative partnership based on
good-neighborliness, friendship, cooperation and
peace, in accordance with the principles of mutual respect
of each other's territorial integrity,
non-aggression, non- interference in each other's internal
affairs, mutual benefit and peaceful
co-existence. Disputes between the two
countries will be settled in line with stipulations in the
U.N. Charter and other international principles by
peaceful means. The two parties reaffirm that
neither side will be the first to use nuclear
weapons against the other and nor will it aim its
strategic nuclear weapons at the other.
The two parties respect the path of political,
economic, social and cultural development of the other, to
ensure the long-term steady development of
bilateral relations. The two sides support each
other's policy to maintain national unity and territorial
integrity. Russia declares that
there is only one China in the world, that the government of
the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government
to represent the whole China and that Taiwan is an
inalienable part of China. Russia is opposed to
any form of independence of Taiwan.
The two sides are determined to build the
boundary between the two countries into one of
permanent peace and lasting friendship. The two
parties will adhere to international principles concerned
and strictly observe the boundary between the two
countries. In accordance with existing
agreements, the two countries will build up
confidence in the military field and mutually
reduce troops in the border areas. They will take
more confidence- building measures in the military area to
enhance their respective security and consolidate regional
and international stability. Military cooperation
between the two countries is not targeted at any
third party. Neither party will join any
alliance or group that harms the other's
sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. Neither
of them will conclude such treaties with any third
party, or allow a third country to use its territory to harm
the other's sovereignty, security and territorial
integrity. The two parties will have
immediate contact and consultations, should any of
the two parties perceives circumstances that may
threaten and undermine peace or its security
interests. The two parties to the treaty
will utilize and perfect the mechanisms of regular
meetings of officials at different levels, to
exchange opinions and coordinate positions on bilateral
issues, issues of mutual concern and on important and
pressing international issues, so as to strengthen
the strategic cooperative partnership based on
equality and trust. The two sides will
strictly adhere to the established principles and
norms of international law and will oppose the
interference in the internal affairs of a
sovereign country by force or under various
excuses. They are willing to make great efforts to
reinforce international peace, stability, development
and cooperation. The two parties
are opposed to any acts that may threaten
international stability, security and peace, and
will coordinate and cooperate in preventing
international conflicts and finding political
solutions to such conflicts. The two
parties are jointly committed to maintaining global
strategic balance and stability, and will endeavor
to promote the adherence of fundamental agreements
concerning the safeguarding and maintenance of
strategic stability. The two sides will push
forward the process of nuclear disarmament and the
reduction of chemical weapons, and will take
measures to prevent the proliferation of weapons
of mass destruction, means of delivery and related
technologies. The two parties will
strengthen coordination in the United Nations, the
U.N. Security Council and its special organizations.
Both sides will strive to enhance the key role of
the United Nations as the most authoritative and
most universal international body of sovereign states, in
handling international affairs, particularly in
the fields of peace and development. The
two parties will vigorously promote and strengthen the
stability in the neighboring areas of the two
countries, create an atmosphere of mutual understanding,
trust and cooperation, and push forward efforts
that aim to set up a multilateral security and
cooperation mechanism in the said areas in line with their
actual situations. The two
parties will deal with their debts and rights of credit in
accordance with relevant agreements and other documents
signed between the governments of the two
countries. The two sides will conduct
cooperation, on the basis of mutual benefit, in
the fields of economy and trade, military technology,
science and technology, energy, transport, nuclear
energy, finance, aeronautics and space, information
technology and other fields of mutual interests,
and facilitate economic and trade cooperation in the border
areas and between the localities of the two
countries. The two sides will greatly
boost exchanges and cooperation in culture,
education, health, information, tourism, sports and law,
and will protect intellectual property rights, in
accordance with their respective domestic laws and
international treaties they have joined.
The two sides will cooperate in international
financial institutions, economic organizations and
forums, and in accordance with stipulations of such bodies,
to facilitate the accession of one party to such
bodies in which the other has already been a
member. The two parties will
cooperate in promoting the realization of human
rights and basic freedoms. They will take effective measures
to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the legal
persons and natural persons of one country in the
territory of the other, in accordance with their respective
international obligations and domestic
laws. The relevant departments of the two
parties will investigate and settle problems and
disputes arising from cooperation and business
operations of legal persons and natural persons of one
country in the territory of the other, in
accordance with relevant laws. The two
parties will cooperate in protecting environment,
preventing cross-border pollution, and in
utilizing waters in the border areas and the
biological resources in the northern Pacific Ocean
and cross-border rivers. The two sides will make joint
efforts to protect the rare species of plants and
animals and the ecosystems in the border areas.
The two parties will, in accordance with
their domestic laws and respective international
obligations, conduct active cooperation in
fighting terrorism, separatism and extremism, in
combating organized crime and illegal trafficking
of drugs and weapons. They will also cooperate in
fighting illegal immigration. Both parties
attach importance to the exchange and cooperation
between the central (federal) legislatures and the
law-enforcing agencies of the two countries. They
will energetically promote the exchange and cooperation
between the two countries' judicial
organizations. The present
treaty will not affect the rights and obligations
of either party as a member of other international
treaties, nor is it targeted at any third
country. The treaty needs to be ratified
by parliaments of the two countries and shall come
into force on the date of exchange of instruments
of ratification. The treaty has a validity
period of 20 years, and will be automatically
extended if neither party notifies the other its
intention to terminate the treaty one year before
its expiration.
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