The two countries argue theoretically these pipelines

Hu Jintao has done honour to the year o China in Russia. A ter ha ing attended, yesterday, Bishkek, capital o the Kyrgyzstan, with its counterparts Russian, kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Uzbek and Iranian (the latter with an obser er only) at the Summit o the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Chinese President ound today, once again ladimir Poutine in the Russian Urals or joint military exercises (see below). With this ourth presidential isit in Russia, Hu Jintao hopes to con ince its large neighbor to the sincerity o its intentions. I the two countries ha e long clashed politically and e en militarily in 1969 along the Ussuri Ri er , their opposition common "hegemonic" o the United States judged projects acilitated warming o their relations at the beginning o the 1990s. Their reconciliation, since then, was especially precipitated by the willingness o Beijing to ind new sources o energy supply, able to dri e mad economic growth about 10 per year or 20 years who has led China to be today the second world importer o hydrocarbons.

Deli eries by rail

At each o its bilateral talks, Hu Jintao thus tries to persuade ladimir Putin to him more generously open its ast reser es o oil and gas. Deli eries o Russian oil are currently limited to complex and costly trans ers by railway. On the 15 million tonnes o crude promised in 2006, only 10 million ha e actually crossed the border. To boost such lows, which meet, or the moment, only 15 o Chinese demand, Beijing press Moscow to access the uture giant pipeline rom Eastern Siberia to Nakhodka, a port on the Paci ic coast. But the opposition o the Japanese authorities, who had initiated and unded the bulk o the Pharaonic project, complicates the situation.

Seeking to reduce its dependence on oil and coal (75 o its electricity production), China also is looking or a ew years, the Russian natural gas reser es and leads two projects rom Russia. irst the link to the ields in Eastern Siberia, another in the Western Siberian reser es. "The two countries argue theoretically these pipelines." The Russia sees an opportunity to di ersi y its markets. China has huge needs. "But their agreement loundering on inancial issues," says John Harris, an expert o Cera (Cambridge Energy Research Associates) in Beijing. Always controlling the price o natural gas on its territory, China re uses to pay its international standing in the world market price and asked Moscow to signi icant discounts.

Mistrust persists

I the Russian authorities welcome the rapprochement with Beijing and o the light o their two-way trade that could reach 80 billion in 2010 they still remain ery wary to their ambitious partner. The Russia is haunted by the ear to be demographically swamped by China in an Eastern Siberia that she has much di iculty to populate. In the three border pro inces o the region, some 130 million Chinese, many workers shuttling across the border, ace 7.5 million Russians. In addition, China grows its pawns in ancient hunting kept the Russia, especially Azerbaijan and the Kazakhstan. In this strategic country (see below), which could become the ourth largest exporter o black gold by 2015, the number a Chinese oil, NCPC (national company o oil rom China), pro ided nothing less than $ 4.18 billion to acquire Petrokazakhstan, richly with potential reser es. China also launched late 2005 the Atasu-Alashankou pipeline, the irst built outside its borders, or $ 700 million. It must pro ide irst 10 million tonnes o oil per year. As ar as the Russia.