MOSCOW, July 16 (Xinhua) -- China has helped Russia prepare for the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), the country's sovereign wealth fund, said at an online press conference on Thursday.

Russia was among the first to receive important information about the disease from China back in January, Dmitriev said. "This allowed us to focus on starting the production of both tests and drugs," he added.

He said that at the initial stage of the coronavirus outbreak in the world, cooperation with Chinese manufacturers of medical and protective equipment played an important role in protecting Russians from COVID-19.

Dmitriev also said that RDIF actively exchanges information and cooperates with partners in China on the development of an adenovirus-based vaccine, because it believes that this is "the right technology and the most promising one."

"We have established close strategic cooperation with China in all areas, including very practical cooperation between our doctors, scientists and ministries," he said.

Earlier this year, RDIF supported the publication of the Russian version of China's anti-coronavirus guide titled "The Handbook on COVID-19 Prevention and Treatment" by Russia's government-run Rossiya Segodnya news conglomerate.