Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
St. Petersburg, June 19 /Xinhua/ — Interest in the Chinese language is growing in Russia, which is connected with the expansion of contacts and the growth of economic activity in Russian-Chinese relations. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, answering a question from the Director General of the Chinese news agency Xinhua Fu Hua during a meeting with heads of international news agencies on the sidelines of the 28th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, which is being held in St. Petersburg from June 18 to 21.
“I can say that interest in the Chinese language is growing in Russia. There is nothing surprising here, and there is nothing that would distinguish Russian-Chinese relations in this case from any other relations of our country with other countries in the event of an expansion of the volume of contacts and economic activity,” the Russian leader noted.
As V. Putin said, contacts between Russia and China are growing in all areas. In particular, student exchanges continue. “We have 51 thousand Chinese students studying in Russia, and approximately 25 thousand Russian young people studying in China,” he said, adding that direct contacts have been established between Russian and Chinese universities.
The Russian President also noted contacts in the cultural and humanitarian fields, which are facilitated by the regular holding of thematic cross-years of Russia and China.
“And if my memory serves me right, we started these thematic years with the Year of the Chinese Language in Russia and the Year of the Russian Language in China. It is no coincidence. I think we did it very correctly, since it stimulated the interest of both nations in each other,” he emphasized.
V. Putin explained that when he previously spoke about his close relatives studying Chinese, he was talking about his granddaughter, who speaks Chinese fluently with her teacher from Beijing.
“But my daughter, back in the early 2000s, before all these significant and well-known events, she began to study Chinese on her own initiative. Simply because she wanted to. She hired a teacher and studied,” the Russian president added. –0–