MOSCOW, September 25. /TASS/. Russia looks forward to approval for its bid to chair the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in 2035 and has already secured the backing of China and Vietnam, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said in an interview with TASS.

"We aim to secure approval for Russia's APEC presidency bid for 2035 at the summit. We have Leading economies of the forum have already supported us officially - China, which currently chairs the format, and Vietnam, which takes over the APEC "watch" next year," Rudenko said.

"Similar assurances were received during senior officials' contacts with representatives of ASEAN countries; a number of other delegations have also reacted positively," the senior diplomat noted.

"We are actively working to forge a consensus on this issue from our side," he added.