Russia, China to sign agreements on cooperation in education, healthcare, tourism

The fourth Russian-Chinese Commission is gathering for a session to sign agreements on cooperation in the fields of education, healthcare and tourism, Russian Vice Premier Galina Karelova said in an interview to RIA Novosti and the Chinese news agency Hsinua.

The interview focused on an upcoming mid-September trip of a Russian delegation to China to attend a session of a bilateral Commission on Humanitarian Cooperation. The discussion, according to Karelova, will involve education, healthcare and tourism.

She also said a delegation of the Russian Ministry of Culture officials was traveling to China in four weeks to sign yet another agreement, on cultural cooperation.

"There was some serious progress in the past few years as the two countries strove to develop cooperation in the fields of education, culture, healthcare, tourism and cinematography," the vice premier told journalists. She added that the sides were also contemplating cooperation in the field of the study of archives.

According to Karelova, Russia and China have a good experience of cooperation in many spheres, including the cultural one. A Chinese delegation, for instance, took an active part in the celebration of the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg in late May this year. There were meetings between cultural workers and Chinese exhibitions in Russia. Days of Russian culture, now, are being organized in Beijing and Shanghai.

"Contacts in the cultural sphere are very important," Karelova said. "They always meet a sympathetic echo in the hearts of professionals and ordinary citizens, and they help the nations understand each other better."