Harbin.jpg (Photo : Reuters)
The capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Harbin City, is set to be turned into a center for Sino-Russian cooperation, the city's mayor has announced.
The area of cooperation will be located along the East Land and Sea Silk Road Economic Belt, Mayor Song Xibin said.
"Harbin is an important node along the East Land and Sea Silk Road Economic Belt. Enjoying a solid cooperation foundation with Russia, the city can be developed into a hub station connecting economic cooperation between China and Russia," the mayor proclaimed.
The city has already set up channels that will benefit the relationship between the two countries, including 12 air routes between China and Russia and a cross-border financial service base, according to Harbin Today.
The city government has also established an e-commerce storage and distribution point, which caters to the entirety of Russia via affiliate warehouses in Novosibirsk and Yekaterinburg.
By these means, Russians can avail products via e-commerce platforms such as Come365, Rubest, Foxmall and Easybuy and have them sent via the nearly 20 flights between Harbin and Russia.
In addition, the governments of Harbin and the eastern part of Belarus, also known as White Russia, have entered into an agreement to build a park within the China-White Russia Industrial Park.
Furthermore, the Harbin mayor said that plans for the future include the building of bonded zones and railway container stations, which are expected to create a "cloud valley" and usher in an era where international trains can travel between China and Europe through Russia.
