Putin-Xi Summit Joint Statement Mobilizes for Far-Reaching Advances in Science

May 22—At the conclusion of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s May 19-20 series of meetings and summit, the two governments issued a “Joint Statement of the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China on Further Strengthening Comprehensive Partnership and Strategic Interaction and on Deepening Relations of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation.”

This document specified the two countries’ overview and plan for achieving a “multipolar world order,” “maintain[ing] progress in settlements in national currencies,” the expansion of trade, and so forth. One of the Joint Statement’s driving core concepts is collaboration in space development, including deep-space missions, building the International Lunar Research Station and satellites, etc., which will drive forth scientific-technological discoveries.

The parties agreed to continue implementing large-scale space projects that meet the shared interests of Russia and China and are included in their national space programs, actively promote cooperation, and systematically increase the level of interaction in key areas of space activities, including the International Lunar Research Station, lunar exploration, and deep space exploration….

The parties agreed to deepen mutually beneficial contacts in the field of satellite navigation, actively implement the Russian-Chinese roadmap for cooperation in satellite navigation for 2026–2030, and ensure the complementarity of the GLONASS and Beidou navigation systems for the benefit of users worldwide.

The parties expressed their readiness to continue strengthening Russian-Chinese cooperation in the coordination and use of radio frequencies and satellite orbits, and to continuously deepen Russian-Chinese cooperation and exchange of experience in the field of satellite internet….

Simultaneously, the two nations pledged to pursue a breath-taking undertaking in the widest array of the leading edges in both nuclear fission and fusion:

The parties intend to continue implementing the Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant and Xudapu Nuclear Power Plant construction projects, ensure the timely completion of construction work and commissioning of the facilities, and, on this basis, deepen cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, consistently promote cooperation in the areas of nuclear fusion, fast neutron reactors, and the closed nuclear fuel cycle, and develop cooperation in the form of package agreements in the area of the initial stage of the nuclear fuel cycle and the joint construction of new nuclear power plants based on the principles of mutual benefit and a balance of interests.