Hunan, Russian Federations Strengthen Communication and Collaboration

　　On June 16, the second session of China’s Yangtze River upper and middle reaches and Russian federal districts along the Volga River Bank cooperation council was held in Hefei, Anhui. Hunan Governor Xu Dazhe attended the meeting and made a keynote speech. He had in-depth discussions with relevant Chinese-Russian local governments on strengthening cooperation. Secretary General Wang Qun also attended the meeting.

　　Governor Xu said, “In recent years, Hunan has actively participated in the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative and vigorously promoted the ‘Two River Basins’ exchanges and cooperation.” He noted, “After the council’s first meeting last year, we have formulated and implemented work plans to promote cooperation between China and Russia, set up a promotional center to enhance cooperation with Russia, and held a series of mutual communication and collaboration activities which achieved fruitful results in such fields as economy and trade, scientific education, culture, and tourism.” “Hunan will, under the China-Russia cooperation framework, continue promoting the ‘Two River Basins’ cooperation. We sincerely welcome relevant Russian provinces and federations to cooperate with Hunan to achieve mutual benefits.” He added.

　　Hunan Provincial People’s Government signed economic and trade, science and technology, and cultural cooperation agreements with Russian Kirov State and Nizhny Novgorod State governments respectively. Hunan provincial Education Department and Sports Bureau also signed agreements with the education, culture, and sports departments of Russian Ulyanovsk Oblast, to enhance mutual understanding and cooperation.