Remarks by Vice Premier Li Keqiang
At Moscow State University

Moscow, 28 April 2012

Rector Viktor Antonovich Sadovnichy,
First Deputy Chairman Ivan Melnikov,
Faculty members and students,

It gives me great pleasure to return to Moscow State University (MSU) and meet with you in this august auditorium. My first visit to MSU was some 20 years ago, so I am delighted to be back. During my last visit, I discussed the exchange of students between China and Russia with the university management, faculty members and students . Twenty years on, it has become a reality and many Chinese students have studied at MSU, including 1,500 who are studying here right now. On this occasion, I would like to extend heartfelt appreciation to all of you for the help you have given to Chinese students.

Universities are a melting-place of talents, a treasure-house of ideas and a sanctuary of science. The motto of MSU, "Motherland, Science, Honor" leaves a deep impression and gives people food for thought. Standing here, I cannot but think of Mr. Mikhail Lomonosov, the father of science in Russia as well as founder of MSU. The inventor of the techniques of producing stained glass, he once wrote a poem praising the exquisite Chinese porcelain and its production techniques. This, in a way, reflects the nexus between science and literature, between Russian and Chinese craftsmanship and between Western and Eastern civilizations. Thanks to its profound intellectual tradition, MSU has produced numerous masters and top-notch talents, and made special contributions to the development of China-Russia relations. I arrived in Moscow the day before yesterday. The first thing I did was to meet with personages representing those committed to China-Russia friendship, two of whom are professors of MSU. I said to them that you represent tens of thousands, even hundreds of millions, of people who have participated in, supported and promoted the cause of Sino-Russian friendship. Today, seeing many of you who are so devoted to our friendship, I am even more convinced that the foundation of China-Russia friendship is rooted in our people, particularly young students.

Faculty members and students,

China and Russia are both major countries that boast ancient civilizations. The people of our two countries, young people in particular, shoulder responsibilities for the future and destiny of human kind. Therefore, there is the need to gain deep understanding of China-Russia relationship in the context of international relations with a global and strategic perspective.

The world today is undergoing major development, adjustment and change. Peace, development and cooperation remain the call of the time. The residual impact of the international financial crisis is still with us. At the same time, there are more global challenges. Two trends, in particular, require more attention.

First, globalization and the trend towards a multi-polar world are progressing in parallel. Economic globalization and regional integration are pressing ahead, factors of production are allocated on a global scale for optimal effect, and information networks reach virtually every corner of the world and connect human beings more closely than before. The world has become "flatter" and turned into a global village whose residents are dependent on one another. On the other hand, the trend towards a multi-polar world is increasingly clear. Different forces are forming new balance of power. While developed countries are going through transformation, emerging economies are rising. As a result, no force can shape the evolution of world affairs on its own.

Second, commonality exists alongside diversity. To develop the economy, improve people's wellbeing and promote social equity and justice has become the shared aspiration of people around the world. This represents the common characteristic of world development and the trend of human progress. On the other hand, just like a ray of sunshine has seven colors, the world is a diverse and colorful place where different civilizations and cultures can live side by side and each country should be able to choose the right path of development that serves the interests of their people in light of their respective national conditions.

People can see from this that the world is an open, diverse and symbiotic place. While every country is unique, we all have something in common and thus should accommodate and learn from each other. The world needs peace and cooperation for people to pursue happiness in the course of common development. The world also calls for mutual respect and equality so that while each country's rights are guaranteed, international relations can become more democratic and a more just and reasonable international political and economic order can be established.

China and Russia share a wide range of common interests. It is our common historical responsibility to follow the trend of the world, grow bilateral relations and push for a harmonious world of durable peace and common prosperity.

Faculty members and students,

Since I started this visit, I have been deeply impressed by a booming Russia through viewing its landscape from my plane and through my interaction with the hardworking Russian people. In recent years, Russia has worked hard to develop the economy, promote social equity and pursue an economic modernization strategy with innovation at its heart. You have made remarkable achievements on various fronts, steadily improved people's wellbeing and enhanced Russia's international standing. Russia is an important pole of the world. Russia's development, prosperity and rejuvenation is in the interests of China and conducive to world peace and stability. We wholeheartedly hope to see a more prosperous and stronger Russia.

Since the start of its reform and opening-up, China has doubled its effort to pursue modernization. China's economic aggregate now ranks among the largest in the world and the people generally lead a life of moderate prosperity. At the same time, we are confronted with a lack of balance, coordination and sustainability in development, which we are working hard to address. In the future, China will accelerate the transformation of its model of economic development, and make greater efforts to adjust the economic structure, safeguard and improve people's wellbeing, strive for sustained, steady and robust economic growth, and promote social justice and harmony.

China-Russia relations are as good as they have ever been. Both countries regard the other's development as an opportunity for its own development. The friendship between our people, to borrow a Russian proverb, is like the "the feeling of the elbow". Our relationship has solid foundation from the past, golden opportunities at present and huge potential in the future.

The solid foundation of China-Russia relations is rooted in history and mutual goodwill of our people. The exchanges between China and Russia go back a long time. The history of our two peoples fighting side by side against fascist aggression is particularly worth remembering. In a few days' time on 9 May, Russia will celebrate the 67th anniversary of the victory of the Great Patriotic War. This afternoon, I will visit the Museum of the Great Patriotic War at Poklonnaya Hill and meet some Russian veterans. Many of them have fought Japanese aggressors in northeast China together with Chinese soldiers and people and contributed to the final victory. We will never forget the Russian people's invaluable support for the liberation and development of China.

The golden opportunities of China-Russia relations come from our mutual needs and comparative advantages. Since the end of the Cold War, our relationship has continuously moved forward. The comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination we set up last year set a model for relations between big countries, particularly big emerging countries. China and Russia are both big emerging economies and BRICS countries, and we are both on an upward economic curve. Our ever closer strategic coordination, expanding economic size and significant complementary advantages will inject inexhaustible momentum into our bilateral cooperation.

The huge potential of China-Russia relations comes from our openness to each other. Russia has completed its negotiations to join the WTO and is accelerating the implementation of regional development strategies, including the Far East region. China is working to expand its domestic demand while opening wider to the world. We are moving ahead with the development of the western region, speeding up the development of the mid-western region, and focusing on the border and western regions as the new frontline of opening up. Opening up to Russia is an important strategic component of China's all-dimensional opening up. China and Russia are both in the Asia-Pacific region and on the Eurasian continent. We are each other's biggest neighbors. China welcomes a growing, prosperous and strong Russia, and vice versa. There is so much we can accomplish through cooperation. Our mutual opening and cooperation on the vast Eurasian continent will have catalytic effects on the neighboring regions and Eurasian countries and create greater strategic space for the development of our countries.

Faculty members and students,

We all know that Chinese like to play weiqi, a board game, and Russians like chess. In both games, players should be mindful of the big picture and best strategy. Our two countries are now working on the big picture of China-Russia cooperation and following the world trend of peace, development and cooperation. This is not something out of expediency, and it requires vision and solid work.

China-Russia cooperation should focus on strategic interaction and joint innovation. We are each other's most important and valuable strategic partner, and we should view each other from a long-term and overarching perspective and enrich our strategic partnership of coordination with practical cooperation and big cooperative projects. We also need to follow the trend of scientific, technological and industrial transformations in the world to seek new breakthroughs in our cooperation. We should not just expand the size of cooperation but also improve its quality, and pay special attention to carrying out close cooperation in scientific and technological innovation and the development of new industries in a bid to raise our core competitiveness. Cooperation on strategies and innovation requires wisdom, which can be found in great abundance in universities, and scholars and students like you.

China-Russia cooperation should connect cultures and peoples. Two days ago, I met a lady from the Russia-China Friendship Association who had been working for our friendship for over 50 years. She told me that she had devoted her whole life to the friendship between Russia and China. I think she has a young heart, and hope that our friendship will always flourish thanks to people like her. I wish to take this opportunity to announce on behalf of the Chinese government that we will invite 300 students from MSU to visit and study in China this summer and every facilitation will be provided for you. We look forward to seeing you in China!

China-Russia cooperation should help to maintain world peace, something that is our shared responsibilities. Both China and Russia are responsible big countries that help build the new international order and uphold world peace. China and Russia believe that we should strengthen cooperation in international affairs, safeguard the UN Charter and the norms governing international relations and work for a new international order. I believe the younger generation will carry forward our friendship and tradition.

Faculty members and students,

One of the two MSU professors I met two days ago is the granddaughter of the chief architect of the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, China's first bridge ever on the Yangtze River. More than 50 years ago, Chinese and Russian experts and construction workers worked closely together to turn the deep chasm into a thoroughfare. This professor told me that she had inherited her grandfather's legacy and devoted herself to building the "Chinese language bridge". This is not a visible bridge defined by the law of the conservation of matter. Rather, it is a new and far more majestic bridge capable of carrying more people and connecting the hearts of the Chinese and Russians. During this visit, I can feel that so many young Chinese and Russians are building the bridge of friendship with all their heart. Young people not only represent the future, but are also the owners and explorers of the future. That is why I firmly believe that China-Russia friendship will have greater development and brighter prospects.

In closing, I wish all of you success in your teaching and studies. May the friendship between China and Russia and our people last forever!

Thank you!