Full coverage: South China Sea Is Indisputable Part of China

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has reiterated Russia's stance on the South China Sea issue, saying it should not be internationalized.

Lavrov said this during a joint conference with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Friday. He pointed out unrelated countries should not interfere in this issue, and should comply with the principles that China and ASEAN member states have reached. He also called on relevant parties to resolve the conflict through direct dialogue.

Meanwhile, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said both countries agreed to enhance cooperation, particularly between northeast China and Russia's far east region. They will also prepare for what is known as a "year of media-exchange". He also said China highly looks forward to Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit in June this year.

"We have fully mapped out the details of Russian President Putin's visit to China this year. This is the most important political agenda for China-Russia relations in the first half of this year. We have high expectations and will pay great attention to this visit. The most important task of the Russian foreign minister's visit is to prepare for the president's visit," said Wang Yi.