Russian President Vladimir Putin has hailed the upcoming Sino-Russian military exercise as evidence of the progress made in bilateral military co-operation.

Speaking in Moscow on Tuesday, the Russian president said his country sees China as a long-standing friend with which it shares a huge number of mutual interests.

He made the remarks at a meeting with newly appointed Russian Ambassador to China, Sergei Razov, according to reports by the ITAR-Tass news agency.

Putin's remarks coincide with the moving of Russian troops towards the site of the first Chinese-Russian military exercise.

The defence ministries of the two countries announced on August 2 that joint military drills, dubbed "Peace Mission 2005," will take place around Russia's Vladivostock and East China's Shandong Peninsula from August 18-25.

Ships of Russia's Pacific Fleet started sailing for East China's Shandong Province on Sunday, Colonel General Vladimir Moltensky, first deputy commander of the Russian army, said on Tuesday.

The fleet includes a large anti-submarine vessel, the Marshal Shaposhnikov, a large landing ship and a destroyer. A company of Marine Corps and some students from the Makarov Pacific Ocean Higher Naval School have also joined the contingent.

Moltensky told reporters in the Siberian city of Vladivostok that a company of Psokov's 76th Airborne Division had also moved to the area for the exercise.

Generals and officers of the Russian Defence Ministry and the operational group of the air force, the navy and the army flew to China on Tuesday, Moltensky was quoted by Xinhua as saying.

"We are keeping constant contact with the office of the Russian military attache in Beijing. We are solving all issues related to border and customs services," said Moltensky, who is heading the ministry's operational group during the exercise.

Xinhua also quoted President Putin as saying the manoeuvres will probably be "the largest" in the history of bilateral relations.

President Putin said the Russian army will use "the most advanced weapons" during the exercise.

Meanwhile, when meeting the newly appointed Ambassador to China Sergei Razov, Putin said: "The signing of a major treaty in 2001 and settling of border issues laid a solid foundation for long-term historic prospects, and that's not an overstatement."

He said it would be quite reasonable for the new ambassador to focus on economic relations.

"Our trade is developing well enough, but the real prospects are much broader and we have many spare reserves yet," Putin was quoted as saying.

(China Daily 08/11/2005 page2)