Medvedev seeks hi-tech partnership in China

Release Date: 2010-09-27

Russian oil will be pumped to China by next year. President Dmitry Medvedev will take part in the opening of the new pipeline from Russia with Chinese leader Hu Jintao while visiting the country.

But the two giant countries also look set to boost trade and security in the region.

The leaders have signed 10 agreements, most of them dealing with energy co-operation in the region.

Russia will build two more nuclear reactors in China in addition to another two completed in 2007.

The leaders also signed a broad political declaration in which they pledged continuing support for each other on the international arena. They also called on the creation of what they called a new democratic world order, based on equality for all and same rules for all, denying the hegemony of one country or a group of countries, with an apparent reference to the US.

Also, presidents are going to attend a completion ceremony for the Chinese section of the first oil pipeline to link the two neighbors. The talks to build this pipeline began 15 years ago but the construction began only in 2009. The pipeline will be finally finished around November and the first oil is expected to flow by the end of this year.

It is a remarkable occasion for both countries, because when the pipeline reaches its full capacity, which is expected in 2011, it will increase the quantity of crude oil sold to China threefold. This means China will get its hands on more hydrocarbons, so badly needed, and for Russia it means diversifying its oil supply away from the European markets.

The relationship between Russia and China could hardly be better than today, both economically and politically. In 2009, China surpassed Germany for the first time as Russia’s largest trading partner.

Source: Russia Today

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