Friday, September 24, 2004
MOSCOW Prime Minister Wen Jiabao of China hailed his country's expanding ties
with Russia on Friday as he met Russian officials for talks centering on
secure, long-term access to Russia's vast oil and gas resources.
Speaking to Russian business leaders ahead of talks with Prime Minister Mikhail
Fradkov, Wen moved to allay concerns that an increasingly powerful China was a
potential adversary for Russia.
"China will never seek hegemony, even when our country becomes strong," Wen
said. "China is for Russia a country that can be trusted and counted on. We
have a duty to be friendly neighbors."
In addition to energy questions, Wen said he was also discussing a range of
other bilateral and international issues with Russian officials, who for their
part are seeking China's backing for Russia's application to join the World
Trade Organization. Russia first applied to join in 1993, but started making
major efforts to fulfill membership conditions only when Vladimir Putin became
president in 1999.
"We are placing emphasis on the areas of security and economic cooperation," Wen
said, according to the Itar-Tass news agency.
Wen repeated China's categorical condemnation of recent terrorist attacks in
Russia that culminated in a three-day hostage standoff at a school in the
southern city of Beslan that resulted in the deaths of more than 300 people.
Wen's visit has already had some results. The head of Russia's state-owned
railroad network announced Thursday that a Chinese company would pay for oil
deliveries by rail from the troubled Yukos oil company in October.
[more]
http://www.iht.com/bin/print.php?file=540394.html
--
"There's an old saying in Tennessee -- I know it's in Texas -- that says, fool
me once, shame on you. Fool me -- you can't get fooled again."
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