Russia-China Trade Hits New Milestone with Over 95% Transactions in National Currencies

China is Russia's biggest foreign trade partner, and the two countries do almost all of their business in national currencies, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov told the media at a news briefing.

"China ranks first among our foreign trade partners, while Russia is the fifth-largest trade partner for China. Financial cooperation is expanding, with more than 95% of settlements now being carried out in rubles and yuan," he said, The Caspian Post reports, citing Russian media.

Earlier today, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke via video link for 95 minutes.

According to Ushakov, during the conversation, the leaders expressed satisfaction with the stable dynamics of economic cooperation in the context of Western sanctions, especially in trade, finance, energy, industry, transport, investment, as well as in new areas of cooperation - artificial intelligence, quantum physics and innovative materials.

"The heads of state stressed the need to further improve transport connectivity, upgrade border infrastructure, checkpoints, and increase cargo transportation between our countries. We agreed to continue cooperation to unlock the potential of the Northern Sea Route," Ushakov said.