BEIJING, March 22 (RIA Novosti) - President Vladimir Putin called Wednesday for Russia to move away from its increasing dependence on raw-materials exports to China, saying supplies of high-tech goods had plummeted in 2005.
"Russian supplies of machinery and equipment to China declined by almost 50% in 2005, and this trend occurred against growing supplies of the same goods from China to Russia," Putin told a Russian-Chinese economic forum in Beijing.
Putin said bilateral relations were currently dependent on raw-materials markets.
"That is where the danger of instability in bilateral trade is, and in order to insure ourselves against this threat it is important to improve the quality of trade flows and develop technological and production cooperation," Putin said, adding that he advocated the creation of special economic zones to boost high-tech development.
Currently on a two-day official visit to China, Putin was a keynote speaker at the forum, also attended by Chinese leader Hu Jintao. Key issues on the agenda are ways to boost trade turnover from about $30 billion in 2005 to $60-80 billion, as well as upping Chinese investment in the Russian economy to $12 billion.
Putin said Chinese investment projects in Russia totaling over $2 billion were currently in progress, and added that Russian capital flows to China had increased as well to "more than $500 million".
Russia had sold China 8 million metric tons of oil in 2005, Putin said, putting it fifth among the energy-hungry country's main oil suppliers. He also called for the two countries' businessmen to play a proactive role in taking the partnership further.
The forum, being held jointly by Russia's economics ministry and China's commerce ministry, focused on four areas identified as key to future bilateral cooperation: trade in machinery and equipment, energy, banking and finance, and the IT sector.
Putin also said the services sector had potential for further development.
"Trade in services such as telecommunications and tourism has good prospects," he said.
Financial cooperation should be oriented toward joint projects between small and medium-sized businesses, as well as between large companies, Putin said.
Most forum participants are drawn from major financial and industrial players, including TNK-BP, Uralmash-Izhora, Rostselmash, and Vneshtorgbank. Initial reports suggested 500 Russian participants would be involved, but interest was so high that the figure has swelled considerably. Putin's entourage was reported Tuesday to include 800 businessmen.
Some three dozen contracts amounting to billions of dollars were signed Tuesday on the fringes of Putin's visit.
Also Tuesday, Putin attended the opening ceremony of the Year of Russia in China, a series of cultural, economic and other events designed to promote bilateral exchanges, and unveiled an information center set up in Beijing by RIA Novosti. He also launched RIA Novosti's Chinese-language website.
