China to have significant presence at EEF

Vladivostok (Russia), Sep 2 (IANS) China will have a substantive presence at the 5th Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) being held here from September 4 to 6, with its State Council Vice Premier Hu Chunhua leading a delegation, which will include representatives from major Chinese companies like Alibaba.

The delegation will include representatives of major Chinese companies, such as Alibaba, Asia Fortune Forum, Bank of China, COFCO, CAMC Engineering, State Grid Corporation, China Railway International Group, etc.

Moreover, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, China Overseas Development Association, the Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization, the Union of Chinese Entrepreneurs in Russia intend to send their representatives to join the delegation.

Leading entrepreneurs of the two countries are to discuss joint projects in the Far East of Russia.

At the annual EEF, to be hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, a series of agreements are expected to be signed between Chinese and Russian media, as well as the Roscongress Foundation, which is organizing the event.

Ahead of the EEF, Adviser to the Russian President Anton Kobyakov met Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui in Moscow. The discussed the EEF 2019 business programme in connection with the Chinese delegation's participation formats, in particular, the Russia-China business dialogue.

"I am confident that the upcoming visit of the Chinese delegation to Vladivostok will be a success and contribute to the further development of cooperation between Russia and China," Kobyakov said.

Zhang noted that in 2018, trade between Russia and China reached $107 billion. The Russian President and the Chinese President have set a goal to double trade between the two countries by 2024.

The two sides noted that the year 2019 marks 70 years of diplomatic relations between Russia and China and emphasized that the parties took Russian-Chinese relations to an all-time high level. This attests to neighbourly coexistence and mutually-beneficial cooperation.

"In June this year, during the visit of President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping to Russia, the countries announced the start of a new era of affairs. Our trade and economic relations hold vast potential, especially considering the development of the Eurasian Economic Community and the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative," Kobyakov said.

China traditionally takes an active part in the Roscongress Foundation events such as the Eastern Economic Forum, the St.Petersburg International Economic Forum, the International Arctic Forum and many others.

The 5th China-Russia Media Forum will be held on the start day of the EEF. The event will bring together representatives of leading media, media companies, Internet platforms and other industry organizations of the two countries.