Cooperation between the Northeast of China and the Russian Far East has a huge potential for development
Author: Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in Khabarovsk Jiang Xiaoyang.
“At the end of March this year, President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping visited the Russian Federation on his first foreign visit after being re-elected as president of the country. Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin held large-scale, but at the same time friendly and sincere talks, as well as an exchange of views on a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation.
During the visit, a number of important agreements were reached that open up a wider space for Sino-Russian relations in a new era, giving a powerful impetus and defining grandiose plans for cooperation between the two states, including at the level of northeast China and the Russian Far East.
Spring has come. In the northeast of China and the Far East of Russia, ice and snow melted, rivers opened and swallows flew in. Spring is a time of opportunity. As they say, the main thing in the plan is implementation. After the visit of President Xi Jinping to the northeast of China and the Russian Far East, activity in practical, humanitarian and cultural interaction between our countries has noticeably increased.
Our Consulate General maintains close ties with the provinces of the People’s Republic of China and the subjects of the consular district in the territory of the Russian Federation. We actively play the role of a liaison, assisting Russian delegations in organizing visits to China, inviting domestic representatives to participate in Russian events, and doing everything possible to help the parties communicate and cooperate, encouraging them to achieve great practical results.
Within the framework of the cross-years in the field of sports and physical culture development between China and Russia, such large-scale events as the Russian Youth Chinese Chess Tournament (Xiangqi) and the International Friendly Football Tournament took place, which contributes to further deepening friendly relations between the countries and strengthening ties between the two peoples.
Recently, the Consulate General sent employees to familiarize and inspect enterprises, checkpoints and other infrastructure in the consular district in order to familiarize themselves with the desires of Russian partners to cooperate with China, assess existing problems and relevant proposals for cooperation, discuss effective ways to further promote bilateral practical cooperation and exchanges between the parties, actively promote high-quality and effective growth of cooperation on various projects.
Speaking about the four subjects of our consular district, I would like to note that each region is interested in activating and developing trade, economic, cultural, educational and tourist ties with the People’s Republic of China.
Government delegations of the Jewish Autonomous Region and the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) have already visited Heilongjiang Province in April. Khabarovsk Krai plans to pay an official visit to Heilongjiang Province in the near future, the Amur Region will travel to Heihe at the end of May to participate in a business forum.
In turn, the Khabarovsk Territory was recently visited by the secretary of the Fuyuan City Party Committee of the People’s Republic of China. In the near future, the heads of Yichun City and the Commerce Department of Heilongjiang Province will also lead delegations arriving in the Far East.
During the bilateral visits, the sides exchange views on the implementation of the agreements reached by the heads of the two states, especially on optimizing customs clearance through checkpoints, increasing the capacity of cross-border bridges, strengthening partnership in the field of energy, agriculture, trade, investment, humanitarian and cultural exchanges, and sign a number of cooperation documents.
Sino-Russian relations are currently experiencing the most favorable period in history, and mutual trust between the two countries has reached the highest level. The economies of the countries are mutually complementary, the volume of trade turnover between the countries is growing rapidly, increasing by 38.7% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year and reaching 53.845 billion US dollars. Exports from China to Russia amounted to 24 billion US dollars, an increase of 47%, and imports from Russia — 30 billion US dollars, an increase of 33%. The goal announced by the heads of the two states on the volume of trade turnover in the amount of 200 billion US dollars by 2024 will undoubtedly be achieved ahead of schedule.
By modernizing with Chinese specifics, China comprehensively stimulates the great revival of the Chinese nation, accelerates the pace of comprehensive and comprehensive revival of the northeast of China, activates openness at a high level. Russia is implementing the strategy of “Turning to the East”, intensifying the development and opening of the Far East and will undertake a policy to improve the business environment, providing preferential treatment for investment, which will open up broad prospects for both sides in terms of linking development strategies and building mutually beneficial cooperation on an even grander scale across an expanded range of areas of interaction.
China is ready to work together with Russia under the strategic leadership of President Xi Jinping and President Putin, with the close cooperation of the relevant departments, to continue to deepen practical cooperation, strengthen humanitarian exchanges, achieve complementary advantages, mutually beneficial results, and promote cooperation between the Chinese provinces and the Russian Far East to achieve even greater results.
Cooperation between the Northeast of China and the Russian Far East has a solid political foundation, geographical advantages and huge development potential.
In June of this year, at the initiative of the head of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) Aisen Nikolaev, a large-scale forum of regional cooperation of Yakutia with China will be held in Yakutsk, and from June to August, simultaneously in the cities of Heihe and Blagoveshchensk, events of the thirteenth Chinese-Russian culture fair will be held.
There is no end to the endless sea, raise your sails and sail forward! I am sure that the ship of the Sino-Russian regional cooperation, filled with deep mutual trust and friendship from generation to generation, will fill the sails with a tailwind and set off with the most stable course into the distant future!”