Visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao put forward a four-point proposal in Moscow Tuesday to boost economic and trade cooperation between China and Russia.
Addressing the second high-level Sino-Russian economic forum which was also attended by his Russian counterpart Viktor Zubkov, Wen, currently on an official visit to Russia, raised the proposal as follows.
Firstly, as the forum marks the closing of the economic and trade activities of the "national theme years," both sides should jointly implement the contracts and agreements signed during the national years, develop a blueprint for the future, establish and improve the mechanism for cooperation and keep the good momentum of frequent exchanges between the enterprises of both countries to achieve more fruits, Wen said.
Secondly, the two sides should accelerate the optimization and updating of their trade structures. China attaches more importance to the improvement of the trade structure and quality, instead of merely pursuing a trade surplus, he added.
The two countries should not only strengthen their reciprocal cooperation in the energy sector and resources, but also increase the proportion of machinery, electronic and high-tech products in bilateral trade.
The China-Russia chamber of commerce of machinery and electronic products should play its role as a platform for cooperation in this field, while Russian enterprises should make full use of their advantages in energy machinery, ship construction and aviation to gain a bigger share in the Chinese market, Wen said.
Thirdly, the two countries should actively step up their cooperation in investment, economy and technology.
The two countries should make joint efforts to promote two-way investment and encourage their enterprises to search out new ways of cooperation in such fields as modern agriculture and new and high technology, while taking full advantage of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, the Shanghai 2010 World Expo and Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games.
Finally, the two sides should boost cooperation between their border regions. Sharing a border of over 4,300 km, China and Russia should further arouse local enthusiasm for cooperation in those regions, boost policy coordination, make it more convenient for business and investment, promote the mechanism of cooperation and seek out new platforms for cooperation to bring more welfare to the peoples in those regions.
This proposal was raised against a backdrop of the rapid economic development of China and Russia in recent years, Wen said.
What's more, the holding of reciprocal "national theme years" in China and Russia in the last two years has also enhanced the friendship and cooperation between the two peoples, which would help further bilateral cooperation, he added.
Recalling these cooperation achievements, Wen said trade volume between the two countries is growing at an unprecedented pace, from less than US$30 billion in 2005 to an estimated US$40 billion this year.
The proportion of electromechanical and high-tech products in bilateral trade has risen to 26 percent from 17 percent two years ago, and the two sides have successively launched large cooperative projects in areas such as astronautics, telecommunications and electrical equipment, which provides new opportunities for bilateral cooperation in the electromechanical industry, he said.
The two sides have also begun to formulate medium- and long-term cooperative programs in areas of investment, energy, nuclear energy, science and technology and astronautics.
Wen also praised cooperation at the provincial and municipal levels, saying that nearly 70 partnerships have been established between provinces and cities of China and Russia and trade along the borders constitutes 20 percent of the two sides' bilateral trade.
All these achievements have laid a solid foundation for closer economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, the premier said.
(Xinhua News Agency November 7, 2007)
