China and Japan signed government documents Thursday on two cooperative projects using Japanese aid totaling 1.492 billion Japanese yen (US$13.235 million ).

Long Yongtu, chief negotiator of China's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC), and Japanese Ambassador to China Sakutaro Tanino signed the documents on behalf of their respective governments.

The first project will be on improving equipment at the China- Japan Research and Development Center for Agriculture Technology. Construction on the center began in Beijing on October 31 and will be completed by June 2001. The Japanese Government is committed to giving 1.44 billion yen in aid to buy research equipment for the center.

The aim of the project, sources with the MOFTEC said, is to develop technology that will help China's grain production and improve the income of Chinese farmers.

The second project will use the Japanese aid to plant trees in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Trees will be planted on 4,200 hectares there in three to five years.

The Japanese Government will provide 48 million yen of aid in the first stage to help preliminary investigations for the project.

(Xinhua 12/21/2000)