ST. PETERSBURG, June 4 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the strong rapport between the Russian and Chinese heads of state lays a solid foundation for the two countries to continue opening up new prospects for bilateral ties.

He made the remarks in response to a question from President of Xinhua News Agency Fu Hua at the 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, which opened on Wednesday. On Thursday, he met heads of 13 major international news agencies attending the forum, including Xinhua.

Putin said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping have built a high level of mutual trust and refer to each other as "old friends."

"This is neither an overstatement nor empty polite remarks," Putin said.

Putin said Russia-China relations have grown stronger over time, and the two countries have gradually developed a clear system of principles governing bilateral ties through long-term exchanges.

Twenty-five years ago, the two countries signed the Russia-China Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, a document of great significance that created favorable conditions and laid a solid foundation for bilateral cooperation in various fields, he added.

In recent years, the economic growth and diversified development of both countries have created new opportunities for bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas, Putin said.

Noting that bilateral trade is approaching 250 billion U.S. dollars, the Russian president said the two sides have been increasingly focusing in recent years on new areas of development, including artificial intelligence, information technology, biology, genetics, and other fields.

He said that the friendly bilateral cooperation is not directed against any third party and is based on the principle of mutual benefit.

Putin also said China is developing robustly and playing an increasingly important role in the global economy, world politics and international affairs. He added that Russia has been closely following this trend and is actively carrying out cooperation with China.

Speaking of his recent state visit to China, Putin expressed full confidence that all the goals set during the visit will be achieved.

He said that the two heads of state have finalized their bilateral exchange agenda for this year, and the governments and enterprises of the two countries will continue to deepen cooperation.