Roundup: Chinese, Russian media setups value cooperation

Representatives from both Chinese and Russian media setups on Thursday called for closer cooperation to improve their international communication ability and have larger say on the global area.

They are here at the China-Russia Media Forum, which focuses on how to improve international communication in the era of all media, to discuss new media exchange and cooperation and media's role in promoting the integration of China's Silk Road Economic Belt initiative with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union framework.

At the forum, Tian Shubin, president of Xinhuanet, called on the Internet media of both countries to think about such questions as how to deepen mutual understanding with news and information products, and how to make new media cooperation compatible with the current high level of bilateral ties.

As the years of 2016 and 2017 will be the Year of China-Russia Media Communication, Tian said the Xinhuanet will take this opportunity and follow the trend of media integration to enhance cooperation with Russian counterparts in new media development, media integration and the Internet cultural industry, so as to play a more positive role in promoting the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination.

Representatives from the Chinese side believed that as the new media industry is flourishing, the media of China and Russia should boost coordination in telling stories of mutual concerns or about bilateral relations by exchange of resources, helping each other with comparative advantages, a cross-regional flow of information that will amplify their voice.

Sergey Mikhaylov, director-general of the Tass news agency, said that with a long history of news reporting in Asia-Pacific, Tass has kept a close relationship with media outlets in the region.

It is in China that Tass has done its work with the greatest significance, he stressed, adding that the news agency has long been committed to showing the world what is happening in China in an all-round way.

Mikhaylov added that Tass stands ready to develop an information partnership with Chinese media, and expressed his confidence in achieving win-win results with concerted efforts.

The forum showed the willingness of peoples of the two nations to know more and get more information about the other side, and the desire of their media to beef up coordination in international communication, Dmitry Kiselyov, director-general of Rossiya Segodnya, told Xinhua on the sidelines of the forum.

China and Russia should be the main theaters of global mainstream thoughts to spread justice and healthy ideas to the world, he noted, adding that both countries call for a multi- polarized world, and there is much space for media cooperation in this regard. Endite