Chapter 822: The two countries' grand gesture: Super Free Trade Zone
After several days of busy work, five days later, a plan was sent to Russia through China's official channels.
After receiving the news, the emperor immediately convened an emergency meeting to discuss the entire plan.
In the meeting room, there was also a heated debate. However, the purpose of the debate was not to stop the plan, but because many places wanted to build the free trade zone in their own areas.
Russia is a federal country with many republics under it, and they all have a great deal of independence and autonomy.
Now that Russia is going to establish such a large-scale free trade zone, they all see the profits. So each of them wants to build the free trade zone in their own place. They know that China has money, and once the free trade zone is completed, the locals will benefit the most.
Funds are in short supply everywhere in Russia.
Even Moscow is eager to join this free trade zone. Money is a necessity everywhere in Russia right now. And China is like a nouveau riche waving its money around, looking incredibly attractive to them.
Discussions took place within Russia, but they only lasted a few days.
A few days later, the interests of all parties were aligned, and Russia contacted China for formal negotiations.
This time, the location of the free trade zone chosen by Russia is not the Primorsky Krai that China expected, but it moves north from the Primorsky Krai to the Khabarovsk Krai.
There is a city in Primorsky Krai that countless Chinese people know because it used to be called Vladivostok, which was a humiliating history.
Russia has always been very sensitive and vigilant about this place.
The construction of a free trade zone is most suitable here because there is a ready-made port, but Russia has its own concerns. It is worried that too many Chinese employees will enter there and slowly assimilate this place.
Therefore, Russia chose to move north and build the free trade zone in Khabarovsk Krai.
Khabarovsk Krai is a krai located in Russia's Far East. It is Russia's fourth-largest administrative region, covering an area of 788,000 square kilometers. It administers seven district-level cities and 17 inner-city districts, with a population of 1.328 million.
This area is large enough and has abundant resources, but it also urgently needs funds for development.
Russia feels that this place is the most suitable, and it is also close to the Chinese region, which is suitable for exchanges between the two sides.
The GDP of Khabarovsk as a whole is only over 400 billion rubles.
What is this number? The number is ten rubles to one RMB, and the total output value of more than 700,000 square kilometers of land is less than 50 billion RMB.
In China, let alone city-level units, the GDP of some awesome counties is much higher than here.
Negotiations, intense negotiations, both countries have their own interests to pursue.
However, there were not many points of disagreement this time. After several days of negotiations, a bombshell news shocked the world.
"Russia and China have reached a major agreement to establish a super free trade zone between the two countries, achieving zero tariffs on goods between the two countries..."
"The super free trade zone has been successfully built. Russia and China will jointly develop the Far East..."
"Chinese and Russian companies can recruit foreign employees without restrictions in the free trade zone..."
The news shocked the world.
Russia and China have established a super free trade zone, which will transform the entire Khabarovsk into a free trade zone.
In this free trade zone, goods from China and Russia can be interconnected with zero tariffs.
In addition to commodities, requirements have also been relaxed in areas such as passports and visas.
Here, Chinese employees can apply for work visas, which are valid for up to five years. During the visa period, Chinese employees can travel back and forth between the two countries as many times as they want with just their passports.
This is just like in other cities in China. Such behavior is also to make it easier for Chinese employees to work here.
If these policies alone were not enough to cause an uproar.
What caused the most uproar was that the two countries signed a series of cooperation agreements just after the agreement was signed.
First, Russia and China Nuclear Power Group signed a cooperation agreement, and they will build a large nuclear power plant in the free trade zone.
The technology used in this nuclear power plant is China's latest generation of nuclear power technology, with Russia accounting for 40% and China Nuclear Power accounting for 60%.
The project will be financed by China Nuclear Power and will be jointly managed by China Nuclear Power and Russia after completion. The total installed capacity of the nuclear power plant will reach 12,000 megawatts.
After the construction of the nuclear power plant is completed, it will become the world's first nuclear power plant.
The construction period of the entire nuclear power plant is only five years. After five years, this super nuclear power plant will be successfully built in this free trade zone.
After the construction of this nuclear power plant is completed, it will not only meet local needs, but will also use China's high-voltage transmission technology to supply electricity to surrounding areas.
Regarding new energy, a large number of charging facilities will be built in the free trade zone in the future, and electric machinery will also be invested on a large scale.
Whether it is a family car, a truck, or an engineering vehicle, it requires a lot of electricity.
Not only that, major factories will also be big electricity consumers in the future.
If we use nuclear power now, the electricity price will be cheap by then. Coupled with the cheap raw materials in the Far East, the products produced will be more competitive.
However, the investment in a nuclear power plant is huge, and Russia cannot afford it. Therefore, China Nuclear Power will invest, and the funds that Russia should pay will be loaned by China, and the loan will be repaid with electricity bills.
Russia will not receive any dividends until the re-loan is fully repaid.
No one would do a business that loses money. Russia is equivalent to getting a huge nuclear power plant for free without spending a penny.
Although China spent money, it still made a profit in the long run.
Nuclear power plants are just one of the basic investments.
The announcement also mentioned investments in highways and railways, and the cooperation model is the same: Russia will borrow money from China and then jointly build railways and highways.
These infrastructure projects require large investments, but the returns take a long time.
In order to develop a free trade zone, the infrastructure must be complete. Without infrastructure, everything will be in vain.
One piece of good news after another was announced, and these news caused a sensation around the world.
After seeing this news, Western countries immediately began to discredit this cooperation.
They also used various media outlets to discredit this cooperation. They were afraid that Russia and China would get closer, as China was already powerful enough.
If Russia's resources are added, the global competitiveness of Chinese products will increase again.
However, they don't have any good methods to deal with China now. After all, China is no longer what it used to be. Even the United States doesn't dare to confront it head-on, let alone other countries.
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