On the evening of October 13, 2009, the grand closing ceremony of the celebration on the 60th anniversary of China-Russia diplomatic ties & the Year of Russian Language in China was held in the auditorium of the Great Hall of the People which was ablaze with lights and permeated with a lively and friendly atmosphere. The national flags of China and Russia were hung up side by side and the banner with the words in both Chinese and Russian "warmly celebrating the 60th anniversary of China-Russia diplomatic ties and warm congratulations on the full success of the Year of Russian Language in China" in front of the second-floor balconies at the two sides of the hall were especially eye-catching.

At 8:30 p.m. Premier of the State Council Wen Jiabao and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin stepped on the stage amid brisk tune of welcome. Over 3,000 Chinese and Russian personnel and guests of other countries all stood up and applauded. The band of the People's Liberation Army played the national anthems of China and Russia, formally kicking off the event.

Delivering speeches respectively, Wen and Putin reviewed the extraordinary journey of China-Russia diplomatic ties over 60 years, spoke highly of the fruitful achievements of bilateral strategic cooperative partnership and praised warmly the profound traditional friendship between the two peoples. They unanimously noted that China and Russia, as neighboring countries, major powers in the world and permanent members of the UN Security Council, should constantly increase political mutual trust, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, strengthen strategic partnership and carry on traditional friendship so as to better benefit their people and make greater contributions to promoting world peace and common development.

Later, the two leaders watched the joint performance of Russia's Alexander Red Flag Song and Dance Troupe and Chinese artists together with the guests. The excellent performance won waves of warm applauses from the audience. At the end of the performance, the two prime ministers presented flower baskets to extend congratulations.

State Councilors Liu Yandong and Dai Bingguo were also present at the above activities.

Prior to the ceremony, the two prime ministers jointly met with the personnel who had made outstanding contributions to promoting Russian language in China. They also met with the winners of the contest "Chinese Singing Russian Songs" and presented awards to them.