HARBIN /China/, May 17. /TASS/. The 8th Russia-China Expo will begin its work in Harbin, the administrative center of China’s northernmost Heilongjiang province, with Russian President Vladimir Putin taking part.
The event, bringing together numerous Chinese and Russian companies, was organized by the Russian Industry and Trade Ministry and the Ministry of Economic Development, as well as China’s Ministry of Commerce and the People's Government in Heilongjiang.
Other Russian ministries, including the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Utilities, Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic and the Ministry of Education and Science also participated in organizing the meeting. Other notable contributors from Russia are the Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology, the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs, the Moscow City Administration, the government of Russia’s Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) and the Russian Export Center.
The event will continue until May 21, running in parallel with the 33rd Harbin International Economic and Trade Fair.
According to organizers’ estimates, the exhibition in Harbin will be visited by more than 5,000 professional buyers and around 120 delegations from 44 countries and regions. The area of the entire exhibition is 388,000 square meters, showcasing around 5,000 types and brands of various goods.
The exhibition is on the list of major events, organized in China on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Russian-Chinese diplomatic relations.
Expo’s schedule
The Expo’s business program includes 15 events - forums, sessions and panel discussions. Participants will discuss issues of interregional, trade and economic, investment and research and technology cooperation, and strengthening of ties in spheres of construction, industry, lumber complex, metrology, standardization, logistics, and youth entrepreneurship.
Also, the ‘Made in Russia’ fair was held prior to the start of the forum in Harbin’s central Zhongyang Street. The fair will continue both in the street format (until May 26) and on the exhibition’s premises (until May 21).
The 8th Russia-China Expo will formally begin on May 17, with the participation of key officials from the two countries. The Expo’s main event, the Russian-Chinese Forum on Interregional Cooperation will begin shortly after on the same day. Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to address the event.
Delegations from 25 Russian regions have confirmed their participation in the Expo, and 17 of them will be led by governors.
This year, the exhibition’s motto is ‘Cooperation, Mutual Trust, Opportunities.’ More than 1,400 companies from various Russian regions will showcase their products.
The Russia-China Expo has been held annually since 2014, with the two nations taking turns in hosting it. Since the very first such event, the exhibition attracted over 7,200 companies from Russia and China. Over 1 million entrepreneurs have taken part, signing contracts worth 446.8 billion yuan (around $63 billion). TASS is the main information partner of the event.