On the 27th of March, the General Annual Meeting of Members of the Russian-Chinese Business Council was held on the platform of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 

Traditionally, the solemn part of the event was attended by the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Russian Federation Zhang Hanhui, Governor of Primorsky Krai Oleg Kozhemyako, Vice-President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation Vladimir Padalko, General Director of AVTOVAZ JSC Maxim Sokolov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of FESCO Andrey Severilov,Head of CCPIT department in Russia Gao Qi, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation Dmitry Volvach and other honored guests. 

The meeting was moderated by the Executive Director of the Russian-Chinese Business Council,Evgeny Markin. 

The meeting was opened by the Vice-President of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Vladimir Padalko, who emphasized the new significance of business relations between Russia and China, as well as the important role of the RCBC in the development of bilateral ties.

“The Business Council is a unique structure, which unites entrepreneurs and development institutes. The main goal of the RCBC is to address emerging issues of cooperation and promptly bring them to the attention of the relevant agencies. Representing the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, we assess the achievements of the Council positively and wish it success in the coming year 2024,” he said.

Vladimir Padalko also addressed the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China Zhang Hanhui with a request for assistance in solving existing problems concerning logistics, international payments and other issues of cooperation between Russia and China.

The welcome address to the guests of the event was sent by the Chairman of the RCBC Gennady Timchenko. He expressed his gratitude to the members of the Council for their active participation in the development of Russian-Chinese ties and expressed his confidence in the further effective work of the Russian-Chinese Business Council. He also expressed his gratitude to the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China Zhang Hanhui and the management of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry for their special attention to the RCBC’s activity.

Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Russian Federation Zhang Hanhui emphasized in his welcoming address the highest level of cooperation between Russia and China. 

“The ties between China and Russia have now become a key to stability around the world. Western countries, through sanction policies, are trying to curb the development of our countries; however, the business communities of the two countries have directed all efforts to deepen relations,” Mr. Ambassador stressed.

The Governor of Primorsky Krai Oleg Kozhemyakoattended the annual meeting of the RCBC members. He spoke about the region’s achievements in cooperation with China. Thus, China is currently the leading trade partner of Primorsky Krai. In just the last year, the trade turnover increased by 15% and reached 8.5 billion dollars. Oleg Kozhemyako emphasized the role of the Russian-Chinese Business Council in in developing ties between entrepreneurs of Primorsky Krai and Chinese business: “The Russian-Chinese Business Council actively participated in in organizing business missions and events in Primorsky Krai. I am confident that our interaction with the RCBC will become stronger every year.”

Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation Dmitry Volvach stated that according to expectations, the trade turnover between Russia and China by 2030 will amount to 300 billion rubles. He named equality, trust and mutual respect as the main components of the success of relations between the two countries.

Maxim Sokolov, General Director of AVTOVAZ JSC, and Andrey Severilov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of FESCO (both are RCBC’s members), addressed the participants of the Meeting. Maxim Sokolov emphasized the importance of ensuring technological sovereignty of the domestic automotive industry and noted the necessity of cooperation between Russian and Chinese colleagues in the field of experience exchange.

“In the context of a complex geopolitical situation, RCBC continues to maintain and develop relations with Chinese partners and actively participates in international events such as the “One Belt, One Road” forum, the visit of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Mikhail Mishustin to China. The Council is also actively developing regional ties – in 2023 business missions were made to the Pskov region, the Chechen Republic, Primorye and other regions of Russia. During this year we plan to maximize the achievements of previous years, focus on the most promising areas of cooperation, attract as many Russian and Chinese entrepreneurs as possible to joint interstate projects for the practical implementation of agreements between Mr. Putin and Mr. Xi,” concluded Executive Director of RCBC Evgeny Markin.