SHANGHAI: Russia’s Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin hailed economic relations with China during a trip on Tuesday, in which he will meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping and sign a series of trade agreements.
The two countries have, in recent years, strengthened economic and diplomatic cooperation, with relations growing closer since Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine despite Beijing’s insistence it is neutral in the war.
The Russian foreign ministry said that Mikhail Mishustin landed late Monday in Shanghai before attending a Russian-Chinese Business Forum (RCBF) in the financial hub the next morning.
Also invited to the event were several Russian business tycoons subject to Western restrictions, including the big fertilizer, mining, and steel sectors.
Mishustin told the forum that Moscow was subjected to sanctions pressure on an extraordinary scale last year, but it withstood and continued development.
The Russian PM said that he was convinced that deepening Russian-Chinese relations and enhancing cooperation would positively affect both countries economies.
China as Russia’s largest trade partner
China is largest trading partner of Russia, with trade between the two countries reaching a record 190 billion dollars last year, according to Beijing customs data.
Mishustin said that he was sure that this year, both countries would accomplish the goal set by the leadership on both sides to get mutual turnover to $200 billion. He was referencing a goal set at a meeting between Putin and Xi in March.
Last year, China became Russia’s top energy customer as its gas exports plummeted due to a flurry of Western restrictions over the war against Ukraine.
Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who deals with energy policy, also attended the Tuesday forum in Shanghai.
He said Russian energy supplies to China would increase by 40% year-on-year (YoY) in 2023.
