The press chief of the Year of Russia in China communicated with Chinese Internet users Tuesday on their press work and the exchanges between the Chinese and Russian media.

 

Qian Xiaoqian, deputy director of the Information Office of the State Council, was a guest on the official website of the Year of Russia.

 

He told Internet users that media interaction was an important part of the event, which included the launch of the official website, organization of a seminar on Chinese and Russian media, cross-border media coverage, and Russian participation in the Beijing international book fair, among others.

 

Three activities had already been launched, Qian said.

 

Forty Chinese and Russian journalists set off from Beijing last Tuesday on a 16,000-kilometer road trip to discover the bonds between the two nations.

 

The journalists were reporting on the progress and changes that Russia had experienced in recent years, and describing the friendship between the two peoples, Qian said.

 

The reports would help deepen mutual understanding between the peoples, and contribute to the development of China-Russia relations.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 2, 2006)