Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov said in Beijing Wednesday they had agreed to concentrate on expanding trade ties.

Wen and Kasyanov issued a joint communique after the eighth regular meeting of the Sino-Russian prime ministers, which ended earlier Wednesday.

The communique says the two heads of government believed the two countries should work toward "the breakthrough of bilateral economic and trade ties and the marked increase of trade volume", which was the consensus reached by Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Vladimir Putin during Hu's Russia tour in May.

The two sides should tap their potential and improve commodity structure through expanding trade of machinery and other products with high added value, the document says.

The two sides should create stable and predictable trade conditions and effectively make use of early-warning and consultation mechanisms for sensitive commodities to reduce trade disputes.

The communique says the two sides should eliminate existing differences so as to close bilateral negotiation on Russia's admission to the World Trade Organization.

China and Russia plan to expand the launching of joint ventures and investment in high and new-technology sectors such as machinery, textiles, electronics and telecommunications, as well as in resource development, forestry and timber processing, the communique says.

The Russian side welcomed China to participate in the development of its Siberia and Far East regions. China welcomed Russia's participation in its western development.

In line with the joint statement signed by the two heads of state in May, the communique says the two countries would continue to implement cooperative projects in energy, including pipeline laying, oilfield exploration and oil exports by rail from Russia to China.

The two countries also encouraged corporations to continue cooperation in natural gas projects.

The two countries also agreed to carry out cooperation in using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, power generation equipment, intellectual property rights protection, epidemic disease control, aerospace, telecommunications, and the information industry and banking sector.
 
(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2003)