On 30 September 2019 Ambassador Dayan Jayatilleka and Madame Sanja Jayatilleka attended the reception dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the People’s Republic of China and the 70th anniversary of establishment of the Russian-Chinese diplomatic relations. The Reception was hosted by the newly appointed Ambassador of China to the Russian Federation Chzhan Hanhuei and gathered representatives of the Russian State Duma and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, political figures and military officials, Russian State authorities and Heads of Foreign Missions to Russia. Deputy Foreign Minister Igor V. Morgulov, and the leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) Gennady Zyuganov were present at the event.
The Chinese Ambassador spoke about the longstanding cooperation and supportive and friendly relationship established between China and Russia and paid great attention to the development of collaboration in economic and social fields.
In his speech the Chief Guest First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Russian-Chinese Friendship Society Ivan I. Melnikov who oversees the inter-parliamentary relations of the State Duma with the National People’s congress of the PRC, underlined the longstanding cooperation between Russia and China and recalled that “the Soviet Union was the first country, which recognized the new people's state on the very second day of the proclamation of the PRC and announced the establishment of diplomatic relations with it”. Mr. Melnikov emphasized that the political dialogue between the countries was strengthening and also noted that today the diplomatic relations between Russia and China have reached the best level in their entire history. “They are truly relations of a comprehensive, equal, trusting partnership and strategic interaction”.