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Russia counts on China’s support for Eurasian integration initiatives — Russian ambassador

Russia supports the Chinese project of the Silk Road economic belt

BEIJING, May 25. /TASS/. Russia hopes that China will lend support to Moscow’s integration efforts in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) trade bloc, Russian Ambassador to Beijing Andrey Denisov said on Monday.

"Russia supports the Chinese project of the Silk Road economic belt. Also, Russia as an EEU member, counts on China’s support for our efforts inside the bloc for promoting the EEU integration project," the ambassador said at a forum of non-governmental organizations organized by the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA).

There is a chance to select all the best in the Silk Road and EEU integration projects "to obtain a formula of a common gain," the Russian ambassador said.

Moscow’s participation in regional interaction formats will "ensure the development of the Russian state," specifically, "the social and economic development of Siberia and the Far East," the diplomat said.

"As a positive example of cooperation, I want to refer to the visit by [China’s leader] Xi Jinping to Russia. The leaders of both countries expressed their readiness to join the EEU and the Silk Road economic belt project," the Russian ambassador said.

"The EEU was officially established this year. This Economic Union has big potential. It has the largest territory - over 20 million square km - and its GDP accounts for four percent of global economic output," the Russian diplomat said.

Putin proposes joining Eurasian integration, China’s Silk Road projects

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed at a summit of the post-Soviet trade bloc on May 8 to think about combining Eurasian economic integration and China’s Silk Road imitative.

"In a perspective, I believe we should think about the possibility of harmoniously combining Eurasian economic integration and China’s initiative of the Silk Road economic belt," Putin said at the EEU summit.

Close integration with Chinese partners will contribute to an inflow of investment into the EEU member states and help create new jobs and tap the Eurasian transport potential more effectively, Putin said.

The Treaty on establishing the Eurasian Economic Union was signed by the presidents of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan on May 29, 2014 in Astana. The EEU, which came into effect on January 1, 2015, is designed to ensure the free movement of goods, services, capital and workforce on its territory. The EEU currently comprises Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan. .

China’s integration project aims to revive the ancient Silk Road and build a transport, energy and trade corridor between Europe and Asia.