MOSCOW, May 20 (RIA Novosti) – Moscow’s plans to sign a massive gas deal with Beijing are not connected to the current strained relations between Russia and the West, but rather are based on long-term cooperation, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said.
"Our relations are built on a long-term basis due to the fact that the economic development of the Asia-Pacific region as a whole is evolving, it shows strong growth, and in the future energy will be consumed there at a higher rate," Novak said in an interview with the Russia-24 TV channel.
"That is why we sign these massive contracts to supply gas, oil, construct infrastructure pipelines – they lay the foundation not for the present day, and neither it is associated with the situation around the European partners today. This is due to the development of relations with Asia-Pacific countries in general, with such key partners as China; this is the foundation of the long-term relations, for decades to come," Novak explained.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in China on Tuesday for an official visit. The Russian-Chinese talks are expected to result in the signing of a large package of documents, including bilateral, intergovernmental, inter-departmental and corporate agreements.
Russian energy giant Gazprom and the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) are also due to sign a deal for deliveries of 38 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas over the next 30 years to power the booming Chinese economy.
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