China sees no cause for concern over East Siberian land lease to Chinese businessmen

BEIJING, August 21. /TASS/. China’s Ministry of Commerce sees no cause for concern over the intention of the Trans-Baikal authorities in Eastern Siberian to transfer land to Chinese businessmen for lease, Director of the Ministry’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Department Ling Zhi said on Friday. "The Russian legislation permits the lease of land. I do not understand the causes of the panic," the Chinese official said. ‘We have very good relations in agricultural cooperation and our companies are working very intensely in the field of growing grain and vegetables and building infrastructure for agricultural produce transportation," he said. "As for the Trans-Baikal Territory, there are a lot of possibilities there for the lease of land and for growing grain and other agricultural crops. I don’t see any questions in this respect and I even don’t understand why it is bad to lease," the Chinese official said. The Trans-Baikal authorities intend to transfer the industrial zone in the Mogoitui village, which has been idle since 2010, to China’s Huae Sinban to create an agricultural production and sale center. The authorities of the Trans-Baikal Territory have signed a letter of intent with China’s Huae Sinban, under which the Chinese company plans to invest about 24 billion rubles ($350 million) in local agribusiness development. Under the project, the Chinese investor will take 115,000 hectares of uncultivated lands and pastures on lease in the Nerchinsk-Zavodskoi, Uletovsky, Sretensky and Shilkinsky districts and on the territory of the Aginsk-Buryat Area for a term of up to 49 years. The Chinese company will be required to sign lease agreements with the landowners comprising both private entities and municipalities. Putin-backed People’s Front urges public hearings on Siberian land lease deal with China The All-Russian People’s Front (ONF) public movement led by President Vladimir Putin has called for holding hearings on a prospective deal to lease out large chunks of land to the Chinese investor in East Siberia, the Front’s press office reported in June. "Attracting investment to deeply depressed regions is a noble thing, especially in the light of all the latest statements by ONF leader Vladimir Putin on the need for the quickest implementation of import substitution projects," the public movement’s press office said. "At the same time, the ONF regional division has the firm position that the territorial authorities must hold public hearings on the issue with the involvement of the expert community and public organizations concerned, with the participation of local residents and the administrations of municipalities on the territories covered by the project," the ONF press office quoted co-chairman of the public movement’s Trans-Baikal headquarters Nikolai Govorin as saying. "The document that was signed is so far an unbinding legal agreement for any of the parties but has already caused local residents’ fears," he added. "I don’t see anything terrible if someone cultivates this land but it is important that this should be done in accordance with Russian law and in compliance with all agro-technical requirements that are effective in the Russian Federation and are set to the Russian producer," ONF regional member Andrei Kharin said. He also said the lease term of almost half a century raised questions, especially considering that this term for Russian leaseholders "is no more than 10 years." Read more