  We find an explicit relation between the two known ways of generating an
infinite set of local conserved charges for the string sigma model on AdS_5 x
S^5: the Backlund and monodromy approaches. We start by constructing the
two-parameter family of Backlund transformations for the string with an
arbitrary world-sheet metric. We then show that only for a special value of one
of the parameters the solutions generated by this transformation are compatible
with the Virasoro constraints. By solving the Backlund equations in a
non-perturbative fashion, we finally show that the generating functional of the
Backlund conservation laws is equal to a certain sum of the quasi-momenta. The
positions of the quasi-momenta in the complex spectral plane are uniquely
determined by the real parameter of the Backlund transform.
