China and Russia signed an agreement Thursday, completing the delimitation of the 4,300-kilometer-long boundary line between them.

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov signed the Supplementary Agreement on the Eastern Section of China-Russia Boundary Line on behalf of their respective governments.

Chinese President Hu Jintao and visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin were present at the signing ceremony.

The signing of the agreement means that "following efforts by China and Russia for more than 40 years, the two countries have complete their border delimitation," announced Hu and Putin at a joint press conference following formal talks between them.

The two heads of state stressed that the 4,300-kilometer-long China-Russia boundary line "will hence become a line of peace, friendship, cooperation and development between people of the two countries."

They said the agreement will "create more favorable conditions for the long-term, healthy and stable development of China-Russia strategic partnership of cooperation."

People of the two countries will "always be good neighbors, good friends and good partners," they stressed.

A joint statement signed by Hu and Putin Thursday described the agreement as a "balanced and reasonable" and "politically win-win" solution, and should be "valued and fully affirmed."

China and Russia signed two border agreements in 1991 and 1994 respectively, delimiting the eastern and western sections of the boundary line between them, leaving only two parts of land in the eastern section to be resolved.

Negotiations between China and Russia on boundary line lasted more than 40 years. The pace was greatly accelerated after the two countries singed a good-neighborly treaty of friendship and cooperation in 2001.

The settlement of the China-Russia border issue will offer a reliable guarantee for the long-term friendship and good-neighborly cooperation between people of the two countries, says the joint statement. "It means an important contribution to the security and stability of the Asia-Pacific region and the world at large."

The agreement has been a successful example for the world in settling border disputes, according to the statement.

The delimitation agreement and other border-related agreements will create "new favorable conditions for joint actions in environmental protection, utilization of natural resources, shipping, economic cooperation, and security and stability in the border areas," it says.

The experiences of the two sides demonstrate that the correct and effective way in settling complicated and sensitive issues like border issues lies in peaceful dialogue, fairness, equal consultation, mutual understanding and concession, and balance in each other's interests," the statement says.