China defies US sanctions, boosts trade with Russia

The Chinese representative of the Ministry of Commerce has declared that US sanctions won’t stop trade and economic relations between Russia and China, who pointed out that unilateral sanctions are not a particularly popular thing for the Chinese.

China is open to expanding trade with Russia across all sectors to the maximum extent possible, with Russia-China trade to grow at least 10% in 2018 to $100 billion.

EurAsia Daily reports:

US sanctions will not affect the trade and economic relations between Russia and China, official representative of the Ministry of Commerce of China Gao Feng has stated.

“We hope that Russia and the United States will be able to resolve their differences on the basis of mutual respect and equality. Relations between Russia and China are stable and mature, the external situation cannot influence them,” RIA Novosti quotes him as saying.

At the same time, China has always been negative about any unilateral sanctions, the official stressed.

Now the Chinese side plans to take all possible measures to increase trade with Russia. Current year it should exceed $ 100 billion.

Last year, the Russian-Chinese trade value increased by 20.8% by 2016, to $ 84.07 billion. Significant increase in trade turnover became noticeable already in the first quarter due to the recovery of oil prices, which is the main item of Russian exports to China, and the strengthening of the ruble led to an increase in imports of Chinese goods to Russia.

This year, China opened its market for Russian grain. In February 2018, the Chinese lifted the ban on the wheat import from six regions of Russia, which was in effect because of the Indian and dwarf smuts contamination. It means products from the Altai and Krasnoyarsk Territories, from the Amur, Novosibirsk, Omsk and Chelyabinsk regions.

Meanwhile, China is in the midst of an escalating trade war with America, as the US perceives China’s economic and industrial development as a threat to US global and economic hegemony, as America perceives itself as ‘exceptional’. This perception isn’t without foundation, as China continues to develop bilateral trade with its neighbors, and throughout the world, while the US is visibly watching its influence decline.

That this shift calls for aggressive action from the US in order to stay on the top of world affairs is little more than national narcissism. In this case, America’s efforts to stifle Russia’s economy through sanctions, and that of China through trade tariffs, is having an unintended effect, as America’s geopolitical opponents are taking the cue to work together both politically and economically, whether Washington likes it or not.