Russia's President Vladimir Putin and China's Premier Li Qiang met on Wednesday (Aug. 22) in Moscow, Russia, reaffirming strong bilateral ties.

The meeting took place after the 29th regular meeting between Chinese and Russian heads of government, Chinese media CGTN reported.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of China-Russia diplomatic relations.

At the meeting on Wednesday (Aug. 22), Putin said that trade relations between the two countries are "developing successfully", as quoted by AP News.

Putin added that the "attention that the government of the two countries on both sides are paying to trade and economic ties is yielding results".

Li commended efforts made by Putin and Xi to "inject strong momentum" into "deepening bilateral relations and cooperation".

Reliant on China for political & economic support

Li's four-day official trip comes at a time when the Russian-Ukraine war took on a new dimension, with Moscow pushing back against one of the largest attacks by Ukrainian drones.

It was not reported whether Putin and Li discussed Ukraine during their meeting.

China has maintained an ostensibly neutral stance since the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, although some have claimed it has supplied lethal aid to Russia.

According to Western media, Moscow has become increasingly reliant on China for political and economic support.

With Western countries imposing heavy sanctions, Russia has become more dependent on China's market, goods, and investment.

A U.S. intelligence assessment released this year and cited by AP News stated that China has increased technology sales to Russia that it has used to produce military arms.

Top image via Xinhua