From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The
Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation Between the
People's Republic of China
and the
Russian Federation
(FCT) is a
treaty
outlining a twenty-year cooperation between China and Russia. It was signed by the leaders of the two countries,
Jiang Zemin
and
Vladimir Putin
, on July 16, 2001.
The treaty describes actions that should be taken by the two countries to establish for
peaceful
relations and
economic
cooperation, as well as
diplomatic
and
political
reliance. Article 9 of the treaty has started
controversy
because it may be viewed as a
defense
pact
, meaning if one of the two countries becomes involved in a
war
, the other country must help them. Additionally, articles A7 and A16 point at increasing
military
cooperation, including the sharing of "military know-how" (A16), namely, Chinese access to Russian
military technology
.
The treaty also describes a mutual, cooperative approach to
environmental technology
regulations
and
energy conservation
; and toward
international finance
and
trade
. The document affirms Russia's stand on
Taiwan as "an inalienable part of China"
(A5), and highlights the commitment to ensure the "national unity and territorial integrity" in the two countries (A4).
Analysts have pointed out several different reasons for the FCT, mostly involving benefits for both China and Russia.
[1]
- China's
armed forces
are largely outdated, and they want to improve them. The treaty says that Russia will share their training and technology with China, which will help that.
- China wants a stable, consistent and affordable level of
fuel
shipments, especially
petroleum
. This goal can be better met by using Russian oil, including the construction of a
Trans-Siberian oil pipeline
.
[2]
[3]
- China wants support for its
stance
on
Taiwan
.
- Russia has had trouble getting
capital
since the
dissolution of the Soviet Union
. It will be able to get more capital in several ways through the treaty. They are:
- Russia wants to find
employment
for its skilled workforce.
- Russia wants to sell its military technology and knowledge.
- Russia wants to sell its large reserves of petroleum and
natural gas
.
Both China and Russia fear the
United States
(especially following its strengthened geopolitical position following the
September 11, 2001 attacks
) becoming involved in areas which they believe should only be affected by their respective spheres of national influences and interests: for China, this largely involves
Taiwan
serving as a US
client state
, while for Russia it involves having various former
Soviet Republics
as US client states. Many of these do not border either country, though
Kyrgyzstan
and
Tajikistan
border China, and
Kazakhstan
borders both.
Economic competition with the US, Japan and the EU
[
change
|
change source
]
The United States,
Japan
and the
European Union
are three
economic powers
which have a skilled workforce and access to capital. Russia and China can more effectively compete against these powers in the world economy if Russia has access to Chinese capital and China has access to Russian training and technology.