China, Russia Discuss Efforts to 'Deepen' Trade Ties

Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao met with Russian Minister of Economic Development Maxim Reshetnikov this week to discuss expanding trade between the two countries, China’s Ministry of Commerce said Sept. 19, according to an unofficial translation.

China’s commerce minister noted that China-Russian trade “has continued to deepen and become more solid, bilateral trade has continued to grow, and investment areas have continued to expand.” He also said both countries “should deepen trade and investment cooperation, improve the level of cross-border connectivity, strengthen communication and coordination under multilateral frameworks, and make every effort” to continue meeting. Reshetnikov noted that the “scale of Chinese enterprises' investment in Russia continues to expand.”

The meeting comes as the U.S. and dozens of Western and Asian allies continue to impose strict trade sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. has sanctioned Chinese companies and added others to the Commerce Department’s Entity List for supporting the Russian government.