President Xi congratulates Putin on re-election
President Xi Jinping congratulated Vladimir Putin on Monday, telling his Russian counterpart his re-election "fully reflects the support of the Russian people", state media reported. "In recent years, the Russian people have united as one to overcome challenges," Xi said. "I believe that under your leadership, Russia will be able to achieve greater achievements in national development and construction." Earlier, the Foreign Ministry said "China and Russia are each other's largest neighbours and comprehensive strategic cooperative partners in the new era." With 99 percent of polling stations having submitted results, Putin had secured 87.33 percent of all votes cast, official election data showed on Monday, according to Russian state news agency RIA. (Reporting by Xinhua)