Chinese President Xi Jinping, on a visit to Moscow, expressed his confidence on Monday that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, will win the presidential elections scheduled for March next year.
»I know that next year there are presidential elections in your country. Thanks to your strong leadership Russia has made significant progress in recent years in achieving prosperity,» Xi said, according to Russian media.
»I am convinced that the Russian people will support you in your good intentions,» Xi added in remarks that have caught the attention of the Russian media because Putin has not yet confirmed whether he will run in the elections.
Putin has not responded directly to Xi’s words, although the Kremlin has later denied that Xi had confirmed that Putin will run for re-election.
»President Xi has not said that Putin will run for election. President Xi has expressed his conviction that Russians support Putin and we can only share that conviction,» Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)