Timeline

December 1991: China and Russia sign an agreement to maintain their relationship after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the establishment of the Russian Federation.

December 1992: Russian President Boris Yeltsin makes his first official visit to China.

July 2001: The relationship between the two countries is formalized by the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, a 20-year strategic, economic, and - arguably and controversially - implicit military treaty.