Chinese President Hu Jintao
and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have attended the
opening ceremony of the Year of Russia and delivered speeches at
the high-level China-Russian economic forum, pushing the friendship
between the two countries to a new high. Activities scheduled for
the Year of Russia go far beyond the cultural exchanges.
Xu Tao, an expert in Russian studies in the China Institute of
Contemporary International Relations, gives his insights into the
Sino-Russian economic and trade relations on the overseas edition
of the People's Daily Online.
The article comments that the efforts and achievements jointly
made by the two sides are remarkable, especially in the context of
ups and downs over the past years. For example, the bilateral trade
registered US$6.83 billion in 1996 but plunged to US$5.48 billion
in 1998.
However, political mutual trust which has been consolidated
since the two countries forged the strategic partnership has put
economic and trade exchanges on a fast track. The China-Russia
Treaty of Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation signed in
2001, in particular, laid an important legal foundation for further
progress in economic ties. The bilateral trade that year topped
US$10 billion. Then it took only three years to reach US$21.23
billion in 2004.
The two-way trade growth has been staggering in recent years at
a rate of over 30 percent. The rise in 2005 reached 37.1 percent,
much faster than China's foreign trade growth and pushing the
volume up to US$29.1 billion.
However, the overall upswing momentum is mixed with some
concerns. The imminent problem is the trade structure. Hi-tech
intensive products with high added value are not enough. Trade on
electromechanical products took up only 12.5 percent last year
after continuous decline since 2001 when it made up 25 percent.
China's electromechanical imports from Russia even plummeted to 2.2
percent last year from 28.8 percent in 2001.
Another problem is the trade order. Irregularities make it
difficult to secure the legitimate interests of the governments and
businesses of the two countries.
The investment is sluggish. By the end of 2005, the contracted
investment stood at US$2.38 billion which was not enough to give a
boost to the trade.
All of those issues, though unavoidable in fast growing trade
relations, have negative effects on the bilateral trade. And the
leaders and governments of the two sides have attached great
importance to solving them. They have proposed specific measures to
address the issues when the Year of Russia was launched in
China.
At the China-Russia economic summit last Wednesday, President Hu
Jintao highlighted the fields for the future bilateral economic and
trade cooperation. He expects increase in electromechanical
products in bilateral trade, expansion in trade on energy and
resources, as well as scale-up of two-way investment on home
appliance, communication, infrastructure, and development and deep
processing of oil, gas, forestry and mineral resources.
He also hopes closer ties and personnel exchanges be promoted in
the commercialization of scientific research results in aerospace,
mechanical manufacturing, nuclear energy, new materials and
bio-technology.
Nearly two-thirds of the 22 deals inked between the two sides
during Putin's China visit this time are related to economic and
trade collaboration. That gives a favorable turn to the
Sino-Russian economic and trade ties.
The history of the China-Russian trade cooperation in the past
ten years proves that political mutual trust and development of the
strategic partnership between the two sides are the cornerstones
for the boom of economic and trade cooperation.
It's believed that bilateral trade will reach the goal of US$60
billion to US$80 billion by 2010 as the two countries further their
multi-faceted trade exchanges and cooperation.
(People's Daily March 28, 2006)
