Putin holds talks with Chinese premier

Oct 11, 2011, 8:11 GMT

Beijing - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin met Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Tuesday for talks that were expected to focus on trade, energy and global affairs.

Wen hosted a welcome ceremony for Putin at Beijing's Great Hall of the People before the talks, state media said.

China's Foreign Ministry said Putin, who arrived earlier Tuesday for a two-day visit, was also scheduled to meet President Hu Jintao and Wu Bangguo, the official number two in China's ruling Communist Party.

Analysts said they expected Putin and Wen to discuss Syria, after China and Russia last week vetoed a draft United Nations Security Council resolution that would have called on Syria to respect the human rights of anti-government protesters.

The two sides planned to sign several agreements worth about 7 billion dollars, Russia's Itar-Tass news agency quoted Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov as saying.

The pacts cover cooperation in energy-saving technology, high-speed railways, nanotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and the development of fast-neutron nuclear reactors, the agency said.

Putin was accompanied by Zhukov, the Russian agriculture and telecommunications ministers, and key business leaders including the heads of its nuclear energy corporation, space agency and state gas producer.

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