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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, November 28, 2002

Broad Vistas for Russian-Chinese Cooperation: Interview

People's Daily correspondent stationed in Russia had an exclusive interview with Borissov, chairman of the Russian Federation of Medium and Small Enterprises and president of the Russian Energy Union, discussing questions concerning prospects for cooperation between Chinese and Russian entrepreneurs, how to standardize non-governmental trade, as well as how to deepen Chinese and Russian economic and trade cooperation.


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Recently, this correspondent, Lu Yansong, People's Daily correspondent stationed in Russia, had an exclusive interview with Borissov, one of the Russian delegation members attending the Seventh regular meeting of Chinese and Russian premiers, chairman of the Russian Federation of Medium and Small Enterprises and president of the Russian Energy Union, discussing questions concerning prospects for cooperation between Chinese and Russian entrepreneurs, how to standardize non-governmental trade, as well as how to deepen Chinese and Russian economic and trade cooperation.

Correspondent: With regard to the Seventh Regular Meeting between Chinese and Russian premiers held not long ago in China's Shanghai, how do you, as a member of the delegation, appraise Prime Minister M. Kasyanov's formal visit to China?

Borissov: I think this is a very important and successful visit. President Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu Rongji met in succession with the Russian Government Delegation, they highly appraised and greatly concerned about a host of major questions, such as state relations between Russia and China, economic and trade cooperation and comprehensive development. The comprehensive cooperation between Russia and China is developing steadily and in-depth. I'm greatly satisfied with the result of the visit. My impression on the visits to Shanghai and Beijing to this date still makes me feel immensely excited. In July, I just visited Beijing, Shanghai and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on invitation. The change taken place in China is really amazing. My re-visit to Shanghai after a short interval of one month gives me a strong sense of closeness. I find that China is undergoing positive changes every day. Russian-Chinese cooperation covers a very extensive field. Cooperation between Russia and China is developing in the direction of pragmatism, profundity and higher quality. And that is a fact.

Correspondent: As chairman of the Russian Federation of Medium and Small Enterprises, how do you approach the status quo and development prospects of Russian medium and small enterprises?

Borissov: The Russian Federation of Medium and Small Enterprises was founded on September 18, 2001. Now more than 100 trade associations and incorporated units including seven major Russian federal regions are full members of the federation. During the decade when Russia was carrying out political, social and economic restructuring, Russian enterprises have traversed a very tortuous and arduous course in their development. The environment for enterprise development, services for promoting enterprise development and supporting institutions were very incomplete. We have repeatedly appealed to relevant government departments, the presidential office and the President himself in an effort to seek support for Russia's medium and small enterprises. The Russian Federation of Medium and Small Enterprises is exactly a national organization founded spontaneously under the direct concern of President Vladimir Putin. This is an organization representing Russia's medium and small enterprises to conduct direct dialogs with the government and is an "umbilical" linking the state power and enterprises. On December 5 last year, President Putin received us at the Kremlin, listened to our general views and suggestions on questions concerning the development of Russian medium and small enterprises, establishment of the Russian enterprising spirit and improvement of the business environment for Russian enterprises. Putin pointed out that in order to rejuvenate Russia, it was necessary to have Russia's own entrepreneurs; and in an effort to rid the Russian economy of its excessive dependence on the export of energy and raw and semi-finished materials, it is imperative to vigorously develop Russia's medium and small enterprises.

Through my two visits to China and my contacts with Chinese entrepreneurs, I discover that the Chinese government has a very clear outline for the development of the country's enterprises, a very concrete policy for supporting the development of these enterprises and a very good policy of taxation and encouragement. We are willing to develop cooperation with Chinese entrepreneurs in these fields.

Correspondent: How about the potential and prospect for cooperation between entrepreneurs of China and Russia?

Borissov: A year ago, President Jiang Zemin and President Putin signed the "Sino-Russian Good-Neighborly Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation" in Moscow. This is an extremely important and positive enterprising document, it provides an extensive space for the development of comprehensive and constructive cooperation between enterprises of China and Russia. Russian entrepreneurs have come to realize that the comprehensive cooperation between Russia and China is of necessity, mutual benefit and reciprocity. China has scored significant development in various fields after more than 20 years of the reform and opening-up drive. China can provide us with many experiences for reference, especially in the aspects of establishing a mechanism and formulating laws and policies for enterprise culture and stimulating enterprise development.

At present, the gross output value created by Russian medium and small enterprises accounts for only around 15 percent of GDP. Putin clearly stated that the output value created by Russian medium and small enterprises should make up over 50 percent of GDP. This is a very arduous task placed before us. In its structural reform, Russia pursues a principle of "thorough smash", whereas China's reform is based on creation and construction. China maintains the CPC's leading status in the state, has corrected the dogmatic defects and set up a market economic mechanism, so that the country is filled with vigor for development. During my visits to various parts of China, I saw the various preferential policies formulated by China for developing enterprising spirit and encouraging employment. All these are the methods which we can take for reference.

It is my view that the time for cooperation between Russian and Chinese entrepreneurs is arriving. Of course, it is necessary to develop large-scale cooperative projects between our countries. However, promoting cooperation, exchange of experiences and methods between entrepreneurs from medium and small businesses is the inevitable development orientation for Russia and China to deepen economic and trade cooperation and increasing trade volumes. Finally, I hope that your newspaper, the People's Daily would transmit to relevant Chinese department such an information: the Russian Federation of Medium and Small Enterprises is willing to make its contributions to promoting the development of economic relations and trade between Russia and China and to boosting cooperation and exchange between entrepreneurs of the two countries.

By People's Daily Online


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