Handshake Heard ’Round the World

by Chu Jiwang

March 22， 2013， marked a great day in the history of both China and Russia when Xi Jinping， the new president of the Peoples Republic of China， stepped off the plane in Moscow， Russia. The moment Presidents Xi and Putin shook hands in the Kremlin heralded the intensification of future cooperation between the two countries as strategic partners.

Over the last few years， I， as an entrepreneur， have been honored to join foreign delegations with state leaders. Three years ago， I was lucky enough to travel with Xi Jinping， then Chinas Vice President， on a trip to Sweden. I reeled after Xis astute remarks at a lunch reception for local entrepreneurs. He illustrated how the economies of China and Europe were too intertwined to drift apart， and that Chinas economic development could in turn benefit the EU region. He also encouraged Chinese and European entrepreneurs alike to seek out new business opportunities while striving to minimize losses.

As my most recent visit with President Xi approached， one of my friends exclaimed， “You should be proud to get such a lucky opportunity！” I rebuked him，“Beyond pride and honor lies responsibility， which is more important.” As part of the delegation， I feel responsible to act on behalf of the clout of Chinas business， the pistons of a nation churning out economic progress.

Yet as our planet witnessed economic decline， many entrepreneurs endured unbearable pressure. “To be or not to be？” became less abstract. Enterprises die when they are not competitive enough. I was blessed to have heard talks between state heads and have found the insight to soak up everything I could about domestic and international economic situations， so I could optimally position and direct my own business. Ningbo Ruyi Joint Stock Co.， Ltd.， my company， has supplied products including carriers， fork trucks， and forklifts to 145 countries. Nevertheless， we are still sketching improved plans for foreign trade as well as the domestic market. Our numbers show that Russia is a major market for our overseas business. Our marketing plan will be intricately linked to its economic development. My visit with President Xi bestowed me an extraordinary chance for future cooperation with Russian businesspeople.

During my stay there， I attended the Sino-Russian Forum on Economic and Trade Cooperation in Moscow on March 22， where 12 entrepreneurs from both countries discussed accelerating economic development and cooperation between the two countries. At the opening ceremony of the“Tourism Year of China” in Russia， President Xi addressed strengthening economic ties between China and Russia， urging deeper collaboration in finance and tourism between Chinese and Russian entrepreneurs.

Actually， the two countries are complementary economically. Russias rich petroleum endowment and mineral resources coupled with its strong aerospace technology create a wide spectrum for cooperation in myriad sectors， including mechanical and electrical production， tourism， equipment manufacturing， building materials， textiles， agriculture， energy conservation， environmental protection， and manufacturing. Take a look at figures from 2012： Trade volume between China and Russia was US$88.16 billion – far below the trajectory required to meet the goal of surpassing US$200 billion by 2020.

The maintenance of a strategic partnership between China and Russia is particularly important in days when the world has become more unstable politically and economically. The choice of Russia for Xis first foreign visit after being inaugurated Chinas president sparked a new dawn for cooperation between the neighbors， and added fuel to the flames of economic opportunity.