High-speed rail deal among 21 signed by China and Russia

ST. PETERSBURG, Nov. 7, 2016 (Xinhua) — Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (L) shakes hands with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev at the 21st China-Russia Prime Ministers’ Regular Meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, Nov. 7, 2016. (Xinhua/Zhang Duo) (zhs)

Twenty-one agreements were signed between China and Russia on Monday to further promote cooperation in various fields, including on high-speed railways, during Premier Li Keqiang’s visit to St. Petersburg.

Li and his Russian counterpart, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, witnessed the signing of the agreements — which also included civil nuclear power technologies, energy projects and linking China’s Belt and Road Initiative with the Russia-dominated Eurasian Economic Union — after the 21st China-Russia Prime Ministers’ Regular Meeting in St. Petersburg.

Premier Li arrived in St. Petersburg on Sunday, the fourth stop of an eight-day Eurasian trip that has also taken him to Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Latvia. He was accompanied by Medvedev to visit the State Hermitage Museum, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Economic cooperation between Russia and China is meeting expectations with more than $40 billion in trade this year, said Medvedev during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li in St. Petersburg, Russian English-language news channel RT reported.

Medvedev has expressed satisfaction about the current level of business cooperation between Moscow and Beijing, saying that the two countries plan to increase their bilateral trade volume to $200 billion within the next 3 to 7 years, RT reported. (People’s Daily)