China and Russia seal border pact
China and Russia signed a pact that finally settled the demarcation of their 4,300 km border, the scene of armed
clashes during the height of the Cold War.
The "additional protocol on the eastern part of borders" was signed by Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and his
Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
Russia is eager to boost exports of oil, gas and nuclear products to China, the world's second biggest consumer of
oil and power, though China's growing world clout is watched with some anxiety by Moscow's elite.
Russia, whose $ 1.3 tn economy is booming for a tenth straight year, has forged close ties with China on a number of
world issues, including Iran and North Korea.
But relations over the past century have run hot and cold. China and the Soviet Union went from being best friends in
the 1950s to suspicious rivals a decade later when they fought a series of border skirmishes after falling out over
ideological principles.
The two countries signed an agreement on demarcation of the eastern part of their border in 1991, followed by a
supplementary agreement in 2004. A pact on the western border was signed in 1994.
