Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao agreed on Monday to strengthen bilateral relations and reached a comprehensive consensus on major international issues.

In their talks held in the Kremlin, President Putin thanked President Hu for coming to Moscow to take part in the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany, saying that the Russian government and its people always remember the history that China and the Soviet Union made a great contribution to the victory over fascism.

Russia always remembers that the Chinese people sustained heavy losses in their struggle against Japanese aggressors, Putin said.

President Hu congratulated Russia on the successful May 9 celebrations held on the Red Square in Moscow, adding that "the Russian people made a great contribution to the world in their struggle against fascism, the Chinese people and the whole world will never forget it."

This year, Hu said, China will mark the 60th anniversary of the victory of China's anti-Japanese war. He said China will never forget the Russian veterans who helped China in fighting Japanese invaders in World War II.

The Chinese president said China is happy to see the steady and mature development of the bilateral relations in all fields. He said in order to strengthen the strategic cooperative partnership, the two sides should enhance strategic coordination so as to safeguard world peace and regional stability.

During the talks, Putin said Russia firmly supports China's unification efforts and the Chinese president expressed appreciation for Russia's one-China policy.

The Russian president expressed satisfaction with the smooth development of bilateral relations, saying that he is looking forward to President Hu's official visit to Russia scheduled for late June this year.