YEREVAN, AUGUST 24, ARMENPRESS. Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Board Tigran Sargsyan held a meeting with the first-ranked Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China Zhang Gaoli on August 24. The meeting took place at the initiative of the Chinese side.

As “Armenpress” was informed from the press service of the EEC, Zhang Gaoli thanked Tigran Sargsyan for his visit and for the opportunity to discuss the prospects for the development of relations between China and the EAEU.

“We greatly appreciate your enormous contribution to the development of Armenian-Chinese relations when you occupied the post of Armenian Premier”, he said.

Tigran Sargsyan thanked for the cordial reception and stated the importance of the discussion of the prospects for the development of relations between PRC and the EAEU.  The Chairman of the Board particularly said, “Despite the fact that active negotiations over the signing of a trade and economic agreement are underway between the trade block of the EAEU and the Ministry of Commerce of China, my visit and our meeting are aimed at reinforcing the negotiation process and give a new impetus to it. We would like the negotiations to go on in an express pace”.

Zhang Gaoli noted that excessive changes occur in the world while the global economy restores very slowly. “Under those circumstances the Chinese leadership attaches huge significance to cooperation with the EAEU. China establishes friendly relations with all the EAEU member states”, he stated.

The Chairman of the EEC Board mentioned that global transformations take place very rapidly and a new architecture of global trade emerges, thus, China and the EAEU have to actively develop cooperation not to remain outside the global trends. China is one of the pivotal partners of the Eurasian Economic Union and currently efforts are made to establish a broad economic partnership based on the EAEU and the Chinese initiative of the Silk Road economic zone.

“I know that you personally supervise the Chinese initiatives and the new Silk Road development project, collaboration with which is one of the priority directions of EAEU’s development strategy”, the EEC Board Chairman announced.

Tigran Sargsyan stated that the EAEU backs the Chinese approach of creating an economic architecture exempt from political component.  

The interlocutors agreed to hold regular meetings to discuss development issues.