​First Vice-Mayor, Head of Mayor's Department Andrey Ignatenko met with the delegation of the People's Government of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China

The meeting was held in advance of the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum.

Addressing the guests, First Vice-Mayor, Head of Mayor's Department Andrey Ignatenko thanked the guests for coming to the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum: "It is the 14th time that Krasnoyarsk holds the Economic Forum. During the previous years, Krasnoyarsk has established itself as a platform for dialogue in the field of economics not only for Krasnoyarsk and the Krasnoyarsk Territory, but for the whole of Russia. We hope that the discussions at the current Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum venues will become a driver in the development of the country's economy as a whole and of Krasnoyarsk's economy in particular."

According to Andrey Ignatenko, Krasnoyarsk has strong connections with many cities of the People's Republic of China, several of which had become Krasnoyarsk's sister-cities, which leads to practical results and further connections development.

A welcoming speech was made by the head of the delegation - the Head of the Department of Commerce of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Mr. Sun. He expressed gratitude for the warm welcome, noting that it was his first time in Krasnoyarsk, but he had heard a lot about the beauty of our city. According to him, Krasnoyarsk and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have great opportunities for further cooperation. "Many Chinese enterprises want to work on the territory of Krasnoyarsk and the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Currently, our regions are actively cooperating in the field of wood processing and agriculture. However, there is still a lot of space for further cooperation, including a great potential for work in the field of tourism - the Chinese are ready to visit Krasnoyarsk with excursions," Mr. Sun said.

According to the Deputy Mayor of Manchuria Mr. Yao, their city is ready for cooperation in the field of agriculture. They are particularly interested in import of Krasnoyarsk wheat. In his opinion, there is a great opportunity to make joint ventures in the field of agriculture.

Summing up the meeting, Andrey Ignatenko said: "Cooperation in the field of agriculture has great prospects. Despite the fact that the Krasnoyarsk Territory is considered an area of risky farming, thanks to unprecedented measures of state support, we are able to leave behind even the Altai Territory in terms of production volumes and crop yields. We are really glad that the Chinese tourists are interested in visiting Krasnoyarsk. Krasnoyarsk is a unique city. Right within its boundaries is situated a natural reserve, "Stolby"("Rock Pillars"). Currently we see the development of the transport infrastructure, a new airport terminal is being built to make the tourists' arrival and departure as comfortable as possible. We are happy to welcome more tourists as we have a lot to show.

We hope to strengthen our ties and expect that your visit will be another milestone in our cooperation."

For the reference

China has been among the largest foreign trade partners of Krasnoyarsk in recent years. The cooperation between Krasnoyarsk and the cities of the People's Republic of China is rapidly​ expanding in various fields. Up till now agreements on cooperation have been concluded with six cities in China (Heihe, Binzhou, Daqing, Harbin, Qiqihar and Changchun), and we cooperate with many others without formalizing our relations.

We see significant results of the participation of enterprises from both sides in major trade and economic events, where concerned parties agree on cooperation and sign contracts. However, the cooperation is not limited to commercial sphere. Thanks to the establishment of contacts between educational institutions, Krasnoyarsk students now have an opportunity to study in China. Also, the Chinese partner and sister cities show interest in the cultural and educational activities of our city. In 2015 was held a children's charity festival "Children to Children", in which the works of children from Harbin, Changchun, Manchuria and Heihe took part. In January 2017 was held the International Children's Art Festival, the topic of which was "Me". About 40 works from the students of the Palaces of Pioneers of Changchun and Heihe took part in the Festival this year. Cooperation is also developing in the sphere of sharing best practices of city government.