In northeast China, Russian and Chinese firms ink deals from manufacturing to agriculture

Chinese and Russian companies attending a regional conference in northeastern China signed a raft of cooperation deals on Monday in sectors ranging from manufacturing and logistics to e-commerce and agriculture, Chinese state media reported. The conference in Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning province, followed last week's meeting in Beijing between Russian President Vladimir Putin and China's President Xi Jinping. China has urged increased cross-border connectivity with Russia and deeper economic cooperation despite disapproval from the West after Russian forces invaded Ukraine last year, with northeast China – comprising the provinces of Liaoning, Heilongjiang and Jilin – gaining new strategic significance as a zone of bilateral trade and commerce.