Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
HARBIN, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) — Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province is actively expanding cooperation with Russia amid the rapid development of the region's ice and snow economy, officials and experts said.
Zhang Yu, an official with the Heilongjiang Provincial Sports and Fitness Administration, noted that Heilongjiang Province actively cooperates with Russia, conducting joint training sessions with hockey and figure skating teams. Russian coaches in speed skating, cross-country skiing, and other winter sports are also invited to improve the skills of local athletes.
According to him, building on Heilongjiang's scientific and educational potential, the Chinese-Russian Regional Association of Winter Sports Universities was established in November 2025 in Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang Province. Within the framework of this association, 15 universities from China and Russia are jointly training personnel and conducting scientific research.
In addition, Harbin University of Physical Education and Heilongjiang Professional College of Ice and Snow Sports signed cooperation agreements with the Lesgaft National State University of Physical Education, Sport and Health and Moscow City Pedagogical University to strengthen collaboration in areas such as faculty and student exchange visits and laboratory development.
Du Bingyang, coach of the Harbin 3A Speed Skating Club, explained that Russia has traditional advantages in winter sports such as figure skating and hockey. In recent years, the club has invited several Russian figure skating and speed skating coaches to train young athletes.
"Russia has traditional advantages in figure skating. The advanced concepts of Russian figure skating coaches are worth studying. At the same time, Russia is strong in ice hockey, and Russian coaches have a unique understanding of technical movements, tactics, physical training, and so on," he said.
In addition, an important area of cooperation is the regular holding of winter sports competitions among professional and amateur athletes from the two countries.
Since the beginning of this year, the province has already hosted similar competitions, including the China-Russia Snow Football Tournament, the 4th International Jingbo Lake Ice Race, the China-Russia Ice and Snow Off-Road Driving Competition, and many others, which vividly demonstrates the close cooperation and strengthening of friendship between the two countries.
An important example of the joint development of ice and snow resources for the purposes of common development is the cable car project between Heihe, China, and Blagoveshchensk, Russia.
Heihe and Blagoveshchensk are separated by a few hundred meters of the Heilongjiang (Amur) River. According to Gao Yiyang, deputy general director of the Jinlonggang Construction Company in Heihe, the project is scheduled to begin trial operation in June 2026. In the future, residents of both countries will be able to cross the Heilongjiang River in just 2.5 minutes. The project's capacity will be 2.6 million people per year in both directions.
"This project will not only be a convenient means of transportation but also a landmark project for Chinese-Russian cooperation in the new era. The construction of the cableway not only reflects the deepening of cooperation between the two countries in infrastructure construction but will also give new impetus to the development of tourism and the economy between the two banks of the Heilongjiang River," he added.
At a business meeting held earlier this month on the sidelines of the 2026 International Ice and Snow Economy Fair in Harbin, Ma Yujun, a leading expert at the Institute of Northeast Asian Strategies at the Harbin Academy of Social Sciences, shared his views on the prospects and approaches for strengthening cooperation between the province and Russia, with an emphasis on unlocking the potential for developing the ice and snow economy.
He said that promoting trade with Russia through ice and snow and creating a cross-border tourism community is one of the key approaches to the economic development of Heilongjiang Province.
In particular, it is necessary to stimulate the modernization of trade with Russia in winter sports equipment and gear and to form a regional tourism cooperation network that covers not only this province but also Vladivostok and Blagoveshchensk, the expert emphasized.
As a reminder, the 2026 International Ice and Snow Economy Fair was held from January 6 to 8 this year and brought together diplomatic representatives accredited in China, representatives of foreign cities, and officials from leading enterprises from more than 20 countries and regions.
A report from the China Tourism Academy shows that by 2025, the scale of China's ice and snow economy will exceed 1 trillion yuan, with more than 14,000 winter tourism-related enterprises operating across China.
China positions the ice and snow economy as a key driver of development and consumption. Its size is expected to reach 1.2 trillion yuan by 2027 and 1.5 trillion yuan by 2030.
At the Central Economic Work Conference in December 2025, China reiterated the importance of efforts to “expand the supply of high-quality goods and services,” and experts expect the tourism market to become even more vibrant this winter. -0-
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