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Russia, China call for working out approach towards nuclear, energy cooperation

Russia, China agree to conduct joint exhibition
Photo ITAR-TASS/ Vladimir Smirnov
Photo ITAR-TASS/ Vladimir Smirnov

XIAN, China, October 18 (Itar-Tass) - Russia and China call for stepping up the efforts aimed at working out a systematic approach towards nuclear and energy cooperation, Russian Vice-Premier Dmitry Rogozin said.

After the 17th session of the Russian-Chinese commission for preparing regular meetings of heads of governments, Rogozin said, “We discussed and practically agreed to work out a systematic approach towards nuclear and energy cooperation. I mean Rosatom State Corporation’s participation in the work on energy units of the Tianwan nuclear power plant.”

Russia and China said “cooperation should embrace all spheres and be regulated by an inter-governmental on the protection of Russian intellectual property”, Rogozin said.

“In general, I want to say the ice is melting in Russian-Chinese relations due to the new Chinese team,” the Russian vice-premier said, adding, “The countries are developing contacts on a regular basis.”

The commission’s session was held ahead of a visit to China by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev slated for October 21-23. China will be represented by Vice-Premier Wang Yang.

Joint exhibition

Russia and China have agreed to hold bilateral exhibitions of technological achievements similar to World EXPO in Harbin, the capital of China’s northeastern Heilongjiang province.

“Harbin is re-acquiring its historical importance in relations between Russia and China. From now on, it is going to be the venue of bilateral Russian-Chinese EXPOs,” Dmitry Rogozin said.

Rogozin said that Russia and China were ready to switch over to interactions between big and mid-sized businesses.

The Russian vice-premier said that a decision to host Russian-Chinese expos in Harbin was a serious breakthrough in expansion of Russian-Chinese investment cooperation. “Such exhibitions will feature all business projects that already exist or will come into existence,” Rogozin said. According to Rogozin, the Russian-Chinese expo will not be a one-time event. It will become a center for monitoring problems that will reveal themselves in the process of business contacts. He emphasized that the sides regarded the expo project to be a business laboratory that will help removing risks and fears arising in the process of collision with an alien investment climate. In his words, such exhibitions will help initiating new decisions which could later be considered by the governments in Russia and China.

Rogozin believed that the expos would be a good floor that would help entrepreneurs to promote contacts with each other.

“That will open their eyes to potential opportunities linked to the creation of a vaster and more spacious investment market in Russia and China. I think that in the past Harbin used to play a very important role in Russian-Chinese relations. Today, this city is turning into a home for the Russian-Chinese EXPO,” Rogozin went on to say.

“China is our key bilateral and international partner. We are certainly satisfied with the current state of our relations with China and regard them to be the best in the history of our relations,” Rogozin emphasized.