MOSCOW, April 29. /ITAR-TASS/. The former owner of the oil trader Gunvor Gennady Timchenko, on whom the United States imposed sanctions, will head the Russian part of the interstate Russian-Chinese Business Council, head of the Russia-China Friendship Committee, Presidential Commissioner for Entrepreneurs' Rights Boris Titov said in an interview to the Izvestia newspaper.

“We have big co-operation prospects in various spheres ranging from electric power engineering to agriculture,” the business ombudsman said. “We hope that the number of joint projects between Russian and Chinese entrepreneurs and trade turnover between the two countries will be growing.”

Reports on Timchenko’s new status were confirmed by his representative Anton Kurevin who noted that “Gennady Timchenko has successful personal experience of co-operation with the Chinese partners, in particular, on the NOVATEK and Sibur projects, and it, certainly, will be useful also in the further strengthening of business ties.”

In March, Gennady Timchenko was put on the US black list that provides for blocking of all assets of the businessman in the United States and visa restrictions in connection with Russia’s position on Ukraine.

Timchenko owns the companies Volga Group, Transoil, Stroytransgaz, Avia Group, Sakhatrans and others. Timchenko sold his main asset — 44% of shares of the oil trader Gunvor to his partner Torbjorn Tornqvist a day before the introduction of the sanctions. Gunvor, which was founded in 2000, is the fourth largest crude oil trader in the world after Glencore, Vitol, and Trafigura.