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China and Russia ink $400 billion gas deal

China and Russia ink $400 billion gas deal

China and Russia signed off on a huge gas deal worth as much as $400 billion over 30 years. The deal has been in talks for about a decade, but experts see the timing of the final agreement as a move by Russia to avoid sanctions from the West. VPC

Calum MacLeod and Anna Arutunyan , USA TODAY8:23 a.m. EDT May 21, 2014
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BEIJING — China and Russia signed off on a huge gas deal worth as much as $400 billion Wednesday that heralds a pivot east for Russian business amid ongoing tensions with the West over Ukraine, though few details of the deal were made public.

The 30-year gas-export contract, seen as a move by Russian President Vladimir Putin to aggressively shift the country's commercial interests east amid mounting sanctions from the United States and Europe, was signed as the Russian leader has enjoyed a warm welcome in China, where the two countries have inked a raft of agreements during his ongoing, two-day visit.

The price China is paying for Russia's gas was not disclosed but the value of the agreement is thought to be somewhere near $400 billion.

The eleventh-hour deal represents "good news for both countries," said Shi Yinhong, an international relations expert at People's University of China, in Beijing. "The political requirements on both sides are so powerful they can overcome the concerns on price," he said. "This is a political action by both sides."

Talks for the deal had been going on for more than a decade and will see Russia export up to 38 billion cubic meters of gas per year, for 30 years, starting in 2018. The export agreement is significant because it will permit Russia to diversify the market for its gas away from Europe, which has threatened sanctions over Russia's incursion into Ukraine.

China's neutrality over Ukraine has begun "tilting" toward Russia, said Shi, but this deal will not fundamentally change a relationship he called "a convenient coalition, not an alliance." The agreement is an example of "selective cooperation, due to the situation in Eastern Europe, the Western Pacific and East Asia at this period," but on some issues their concerns remain incompatible, he said.

"It's a demonstration of the fact that Russia always has and always will have other options to develop relations elsewhere. The threat of isolation coming from the West will not be complete," said Sergei Utkin, political expert at the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Plans already announced by the two nations include building the first railway bridge over their long border, and manufacturing Chinese cars in Russia.

The neighbors, whose relationship has long been strained by distrust, promised Tuesday to increase bilateral trade to $200 billion by 2020, up from $90 billion last year.

Ahead of his visit to Asia's largest economy, Putin told Chinese media that China is a "reliable friend." The Russian leader, now spurned in the West for his annexation of Crimea in eastern Ukraine, received reliably positive media coverage Wednesday in China, where he enjoys personal popularity as a strong leader with a macho charisma unfamiliar in China's straitlaced political system.

Photos and comments highlighting Putin's masculine charm dominated social media sites, although some Internet users expressed pride that the portly Xi Jinping, China's leader, is at least taller than Putin.

Both countries consider the other a useful counterpoint to difficult relations with the United States.

While in China, Putin traveled to Shanghai to attend a two-day session of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, a little-known Asian security group that includes Iran and several Central Asian states but not the U.S. or Japan, China's longtime rival in East Asia, and one of several maritime neighbors currently embroiled in disputes over territory with China.

On Wednesday, Xi told the summit that China is committed to peacefully resolving territorial disputes.

MacLeod reported from Beijing, Arutunyan from Moscow.

:china: flag: Russia
already posted
 
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Channel News Asia in Singapore reported that China could pay 25 billion upfront to Russia in this deal. Also, the transaction will be in Chinese Yuan. :azn:

ITAR-TASS News Agency graphics

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The two chaps are scheduled to see each other in Nov。for the 3rd time in 2014. :hitwall::D

Since they assumed office, the two leaders have met seven times so far. That's a deep level of personal friendship there other than professional.

We might just be watching a powerful security bloc in the making.
 
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The Russian far east used to belong to the Imperial Qing. We have fallen so far, paying for gas from lands we used to own.

Imagine if the Qing dynasty did not cause its own decay!

Spilled milk I know, but it is so bitter to look at what might have been.
 
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The Russian far east used to belong to the Imperial Qing. We have fallen so far, paying for gas from lands we used to own.

Imagine if the Qing dynasty did not cause its own decay!

Spilled milk I know, but it is so bitter to look at what might have been.

If China economy continue to grow in current pace. This 400 billions dollars of 30 years supplies are peanuts compare the finished product we produced and sell overseas to boast our GDP. And lastly, China still holds the largest reserve of shale gas in the world. This deal is more or less a political move to convince Russia to join our alliance to pit against the west.
 
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If China economy continue to grow in current pace. This 400 billions dollars of 30 years supplies are peanuts compare the finished product we produced and sell overseas to boast our GDP. And lastly, China still holds the largest reserve of shale gas in the world. This deal is more or less a political move to convince Russia to join our alliance to pit against the west.

Step 1 : sale all you can to the west
Step 2 : create alliance and complain against the west

Logic = 0

Anyway, congratulations to China
 
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If China economy continue to grow in current pace. This 400 billions dollars of 30 years supplies are peanuts compare the finished product we produced and sell overseas to boast our GDP. And lastly, China still holds the largest reserve of shale gas in the world. This deal is more or less a political move to convince Russia to join our alliance to pit against the west.

400 billion is peanuts?

The Russians are not friends of China and never have been. They are one of the 8 nation alliance who descended on the dying Qing and imposed their unequal treaties.

Pay for the gas but have no illusion that the Russians are allies of China.
 
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400 billion is peanuts?

The Russians are not friends of China and never have been. They are one of the 8 nation alliance who descended on the dying Qing and imposed their unequal treaties.

Pay for the gas but have no illusion that the Russians are allies of China.

China economy in 2020 is expected to be 18 trillion USD so what do you think of 400billions USD in 30 years time?

Of cos, such cooperation is based on situation requirement. But do you expect China to take on the whole world without a single major allies if we bicker over such past matters? We shall not expect to have the vietnamese mentality of expecting to eat the whole pie while not prepare to sacrifice something(Earning China trade but still expect to fight with China over Spratly and Paracel island)

And think about it. It was the Soviet(Russia) who supply tech, know how and expertise to China in the 50s who help China build up a decent industries for us who just endure the Korea and Civil War. We shall not denied those really help lay the foundation for PRC.
 
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The Russian far east used to belong to the Imperial Qing. We have fallen so far, paying for gas from lands we used to own.

Imagine if the Qing dynasty did not cause its own decay!

Spilled milk I know, but it is so bitter to look at what might have been.

China has great chance to take back Outer Mongolia in the near future, but forget about the Outer Manchuria, it is not worthy to have MAD with Russia just for some Taiga forest.

Don't forget that we have the largest reserve of shale gas, this is the key point for our future energy resolution.
 
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