Russian and Chinese media organizations should boost their cooperation to facilitate the integration of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) framework with China's Silk Road Economic Belt initiative, a Russian media leader said.
It makes sense for Russian media to work out a close cooperation with their Chinese counterparts, because the implementation of the Silk Road Economic Belt is very important for Russia, Marat Abulkhatin, deputy chief editor of the Tass news agency, told Xinhua in an interview ahead of an upcoming bilateral media forum scheduled for Thursday.
In a joint statement signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping during Xi's visit to Moscow in early May, the two sides agreed to make concerted efforts to integrate the EAEU construction with the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative, so as to deepen the Russia-China comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination.
Tass has took part in similar forums before, Abulkhatin said, but for Tass this is the first time with such a high level, and Tass has planned to participate in the event at the highest level.
As Abulkhatin sees it, the media have their due role to play in acquainting peoples of both nations with the EAEU framework and the construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt.
Young people in Russia are not quite familiar with what the Silk Road is, so there is a need to highlight the historical aspect of that project in order to help people understand the roots, he noted.
He also believed that there are economic implications of closer media collaboration between Russia and China.
The two sides have agreed to create a common economic space through the docking of each other's development initiatives, "how can this be without the close cooperation between our countries' media," he said.
It is very important that Chinese companies would participate along with their Russian partners in projects like the Trans-Siberian railway and Baikal-Amur Railway, Abulkhatin added.
In fact, Tass has engaged itself with Chinese media and laid a sound foundation for cooperation. Abulkhatin said Tass has already established close ties with Chinese media, including Xinhua, with reciprocal visits to each side.
He mentioned in particular exchanges during the first World Media Summit, a platform launched in 2009 in Beijing to enhance cooperation among media organizations.
Now Tass is working together to create an exchange mechanism of the BRICS media, which would open new horizons for cooperation among Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS), he added.
To further beef up media exchanges, Abulkhatin suggested holding meetings of journalists from both countries to discuss joint projects and common problems.
The common task of the media of both countries is to provide informational support for the strategic partnership between Russia and China, he proposed, via holding meetings regularly and looking for ways and main directions of cooperation.
