Chinese President Xi Jinping brought up the significance of the friendship treaty between Beijing and Moscow on Wednesday in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Xi described relations with Russia as particularly "precious," calling for deeper cooperation and mutual support. He said both countries should strengthen coordination and defend shared interests, Chinese state media reported.
Moscow offers to increase energy supplies
The Russian foreign minister offered China Russia's help in boosting energy supplies to offset disruptions caused by the Iran war, including constraints on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
"Russia can, of course, make up for the resource shortfall facing both China and other countries that are interested in working with us on an equal and mutually beneficial basis," Lavrov told a news conference in China.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit China soon.
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Gulf countries hoping China reins Iran
Amid the chaos in the Middle East following the US-Israeli war on Iran, China has projected itself as a stabilizing force and potential mediator in the conflict.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Vietnamese leader To Lam all met with Xi this week.
This reflects the growing diplomatic activity around the Middle East crisis and China's evolving role in it.
Experts say Gulf countries are hoping for China to help rein Iran's attacks on its neighbors and bring Tehran to the negotiation table.
"China has got leverage and influence over Iran, and there are some hopes and expectations that China can use this influence in a more direct way," Dylan Loh, associate professor at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, told the French AFP news agency.
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