Harbin deepens ties with Russia

Harbin in Northeast China’s Heilongjiang province is taking full advantage of China's Belt and Road Initiative and its unique geography to boost its business, economic and cultural ties with Russia.

"In recent years, Heilongjiang province has expanded its opening-up to the outside world with an emphasis on Russian cooperation," said Heilongjiang Governor Lu Hao in a provincial government report.

Currently, there are 12 daily flights to Russia from Harbin, with the number of flights ranking only second to Beijing; and the Harbin-Yekaterinburg cargo flight that launched in November 2013 is the first cargo flight linking China and Russia.

In terms of rail transportation, Harbin-Russia freight trains have been operating since February 2016, with one train departing each week.

In addition, the highway linking Harbin and Moscow has seen cargo weighing 22,000 metric tons transported on it.

As of the first half of 2017, statistics reveal that international parcels valued at nearly $1,357million were posted to Russia from Harbin using all means of transportation.

Harbin also witnessed frequent technology and cultural exchanges with Russia in 2017, when 18 national-level technology cooperation bases were established in the city containing over 60 businesses. And Harbin established links with six cities in Russia, signing 10 agreements involving investment, industry, architecture and tourism.