Putin wins investment deals in China

Oct 11, 2011, 12:03 GMT

Beijing - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao witnessed the signing of several major investment deals on Tuesday after talks that focussed on trade, energy and global affairs.

Wen said the two sides agreed to strengthen their 'comprehensive strategic partnership' and help 'safeguard global stability and development' by stimulating their economies.

Putin said they expressed a 'mutual desire to find compromise on difficult questions which inevitably arise.'

'In political, humanitarian spheres we have no problems at all. We have reached unprecedented levels of cooperation,' he said.

Putin said they were close to resolving a disagreement over gas giant Gazprom's demand for China to pay a price close to European levels for its gas imports from Russia.

'Those who sell always want to sell at a higher price, while those who buy, want to buy at a lower price,' he said. 'We need to reach a compromise which will satisfy both sides.'

Russian and Chinese media said the total value of 16 deals expected to be signed during Putin's visit was about 7 billion dollars.

Wen and Putin witnessed the signing of an agreement to set up a joint investment fund worth up to 4 billion dollars to be used mainly for projects in Russia, Russia's Itar-tass news agency reported.

The agency said the China Development Bank agreed a separate deal with the Russian state development bank VEB to invest 1.5 billion dollars in the first stage of Russian aluminium firm Rusal's Taishet smelter.

It said the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China agreed to provide project financing for Russia's Udokan copper field, but the value of that agreement was not immediately known.

Other planned agreements covered cooperation in energy-saving technology, high-speed railways, nanotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and the development of fast-neutron nuclear reactors, reports said.

Itar-tass said the two nations also signed a contract valued at some 2.2 billion dollars on Monday for Russia's Norilsk Nickel company to export nickel to China.

Putin, who arrived earlier Tuesday for a two-day visit, was scheduled to meet President Hu Jintao and Wu Bangguo, the official number two in China's ruling Communist Party, on Wednesday.

The two sides were also expected to discuss Syria, after China and Russia last week vetoed a draft United Nations Security Council resolution that would have called on Syria to respect the human rights of anti-government protesters.

Putin was accompanied by two deputy prime ministers, the Russian agriculture and telecommunications ministers, and key business leaders including the heads of its nuclear energy corporation, space agency and state gas producer.

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