Published on: 2026-07-06
Source: Government of the Russian Federation –
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Deputy Chairman of the Government of Russia Dmitry Chernyshenko and Director of the Department of Information and Press of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia Maria Zakharova spoke at the opening ceremony of the media tour of the Golden Ring of Russia “Roads of Friendship: Preserving the Past, Striving for the Future,” launched in honor of the 70th anniversary of cooperation between the news agencies TASS and Xinhua.
Dmitry Chernyshenko noted that the TASS building, located in close proximity to the Kremlin, is not just an architectural object, but also a place that unites a huge number of historical events.
He stated that the plans for launching the media tour had been developed methodically, over nearly 70 years ‒ the duration of cooperation between Xinhua and TASS.
The Vice Premier emphasized that very important decisions are made during meetings between our leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Last year, in their presence, a Strategy for the Development of Relations between TASS and Xinhua until 2030 was signed. Its logical development was the signing, also in the presence of our leaders, of a Memorandum on conducting joint events in May of this year.
“Today the media tour will be launched: it will take place from July 6 to 14 along the route of the ‘Golden Ring,’ which will also celebrate its anniversary next year – 60 years. The participants of the media tour – 25 representatives from the Xinhua and TASS agencies – will be able to visit the cities along the ‘Golden Ring’ route, which are essentially a historical book of Russia. The Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, the Rostov Kremlin, and our other famous cities and shrines will be available for participants of the media tour to become acquainted with. And in August, there will be a reciprocal visit of our ITAR-TASS delegation for a joint media tour already in China,” emphasized the Deputy Prime Minister.
He also added that this year, by the Government’s decision, the “Golden Ring” route was expanded by another 49 cities. It was joined by Nizhny Novgorod, Arzamas, Uglich, and other cities.
The Deputy Prime Minister thanked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for their work on the development of Russian-Chinese relations and the organizers of the media tour for this initiative, noting that it will contribute to the development of tourism in Russia.
“Chinese tourists love visiting Russia very much, we are always happy to welcome them. Last year, the joint tourist flow between our countries amounted to over 3.3 million tourists. This year, in the first quarter, there was an increase of almost 50%. I think this is not a coincidence. Our leaders have decided to extend the visa-free regime between our countries. We will be setting new records in our relations in the spirit of comprehensive strategic partnership and, of course, in the field of tourism. Thank you all very much, safe travels!” concluded the Deputy Prime Minister.
The event was also attended by Andrey Kondrashov, Director General of the Russian news agency TASS, and Zhang Hanhui, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Russian Federation.
Maria Zakharova drew attention to the locations of the media tour route. She noted that one of these points is connected to the history of interstate relations between Russia and China:
“The route will pass through the Ivanovo region, because it is home to the famous ‘Interdom’ of the Stasova International School, which was founded in 1933. There, children from China were raised, educated, and lived as if in a family. They became outstanding figures of their own country, and at the same time incredible Russian speakers. Honest, sincere, very decent people who communicate with each other, believe it or not, also in Russian.”
The second notable place Maria Zakharova highlighted was the “amazing town of Mstera,” located in the Vladimir region: “I know that Chinese tourists and citizens of China really love souvenirs. In Mstera, you’ll find everything: both old but now modern hand-painted boxes, and items made of silver, which are highly valued in our country and around the world, as well as lace. Visit the museum there — you will definitely bring back something as a souvenir. So, honestly, I have to say, I’m envious! Wishing you good trips and wonderful experiences. Bon voyage.”
TASS CEO Andrey Kondrashov stated that the event is of historical significance. He noted that this is the first-ever media tour of the Golden Ring cities organized jointly by two agencies and expressed confidence that the Chinese colleagues will find it very interesting to visit Russian cities.
“Today we must protect the truth about the ongoing events, and we must preserve the historical truth, which is being attacked just as today’s events are being overwhelmed with fake news — against us and against the Chinese side. Therefore, we help each other verify the facts,” said Andrey Kondrashov.
He wished the participants of the media tour a pleasant journey and expressed hope that the trip would become another step towards bringing the peoples of the two countries closer together.
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