Editor-in-Chief of Rossiyskaya Gazeta Vladislav Fronin, Publisher of Rossiyskaya Gazeta Pavel Negoitsa, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of China Daily Zhu Ling and China's Ambassador to Russia Li Hui attend the launch ceremony in Moscow of the Russian version of China Watch (top left) and the photo album One Hundred Photographers Focus on China. XU JINGXING / CHINA DAILY

China Daily launched on Tuesday its Russian edition of China Watch, the media group's multilingual publication, in partnership with leading Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Zhu Ling, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, said 2016 is the Sino-Russian Media Exchange Year, an idea proposed by President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin last year.

As a China Daily supplement, China Watch has been telling China's story in English, French, German and Spanish, Zhu said at the launch ceremony.

Li Hui, China's ambassador to Russia, said, "Congratulations on the publication of the Russian edition of China Watch. As President Putin is expected to visit China soon, the launch will help pave the way for the visit. I believe it will boost the understanding of the peoples of the two countries."

During the launch ceremony, the two newspapers also jointly unveiled a photo album —One Hundred Photographers Focus on China.

Zhu said publication of the Russian edition of China Watch and the new album signifies the friendship and cooperation momentum between the two nations and their peoples, adding that it will help Russian people to understand China better and intensify ties and the partnership between the two countries.