Unit VII. International cooperation. A visit to an enterprise.

Ex. 1. Read and translate the text. Answer the questions below.

First Far Eastern International Economic Congress

The city of Khabarovsk is a traditional place of holding regional and international seminars, conferences and meetings. Its propitious location makes favorable conditions for business and cooperation and attracts investors. Some factors strengthen the system of economic ties. They are the advantageous transport and geographic position, political and social stability, status of the Federal Okrug capital, high professional, informative and cultural level of people, their young age, friendly atmosphere and opening for collaboration.

In September, 2005, the first Far Eastern International Economic Congress took place in Khabarovsk. Its major goals were stated as following:

• To work out efficient ways for economic integration of the Russian Far East among one-whole economic area and

• To develop mutually beneficial cooperation in the international market, first if all with countries of the Asian Pacific Rim.

That was shown by the motto of the Congress: “Horizons of Russian partnership with countries of the Asian Pacific Rim: people, nature, economics”.

Academician Alexander Nekipelov, Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, had analyzed the economic situation and prospects of the social and economic development in the Russian Far East in his background paper. He stated that the regional economics had lingered, it had lagged behind the rest part of Russia and its foreign neighbors in the basic social and economic performances. Moreover, there was a danger to loose our territories and become a raw material appendage to countries-users of non-manufactured resources. Academician Nekipelov proposed some directions in economic development:

1. To improve standard of living so that to promote preservation of population in the region and stop the outflow.

2. To develop manufacturing industries.

3. To attract investments of national business and state funds, including state reserves, for prospective projects.

4. To build transportation and energy supply corridors, gas and oil pipelines, container transcontinental bridges and highways are among them.

Over 800 Russian and 120 foreign representatives of political, business, scientific circles and public organizations took part in the plenary meetings, round tables and conferences. They discussed supremely important issues like effective mineral and biological use of resources, improvement of demographic situation, transportation strategy in the region, development of electric-power and gas and oil complex, development of financial market, cross border cooperation, international tourism, complex development of engineering, power and transportation infrastructure,

To solve problems in these spheres, it is necessary to realize the projects, which could become a contribution into the development of partnership with countries of the Asian Pacific Rim and international economic community.

Among these projects are:

• Construction of highways Chita – Khabarovsk, Lidoga – Vanino, modernization of highways from Komsomolsk-on-Amur to Nikolaevsk-on-Amur, the one from Bilibino through Komsomolsky to Anadyr.

• Construction of Transkorean and Amur – Yakutia railroads.

Good roads are indispensable for the region. They will breathe a new life into dozens of remote villages and settlements and open up new vistas for the development of a number of agricultural, processing, wood-cutting and gold-digging enterprises. The projects will enable to form a transmit flow of cargo across Russia, import of consumer goods from the Asian Pacific Rim to the European part of Russia.

• Petroleum pipeline “Eastern Siberia – The Pacific Ocean”, oil-loading terminal in De-Kastri, gas transmission pipeline from Sakhalin to Khabarovsk.

These projects will help the Far East solve energy problem and provide with job for thousands of workers.

• Modernization of the sea ports of Vanino, Nakhodka, Zarubino, Slavyanka, Possiet, Perevoznaya, Magadan and the construction of container terminal in Vostochny are also among major prospective projects.

They have already become a linking point for import and transit of container cargoes from China, Korea and Japan demonstrating a stable growth of cargo transshipment volumes.

• Another main project is to build the second section of the bridge across the Amur River as the bridge is a part of the highway Chita – Kabarovsk.

There should be special economic and recreational zones in Yakutia, Kamchatka, Khabarovsk, Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Vanino. Each of them has some peculiarities, which enable to develop production of raw diamonds, tourism, fish processing branch or aircraft machinery manufacturing, etc…

Certainly, the social and economic development of the Russian East demands finance and establishing stable legislative norms, including the ones on taxes and other benefits for business.

Foreign participants of the Congress from Japan, China, Republic of Korea, Vietnam, the US, the Ukraine, Norway and Switzerland took an active part in discussions, expressed their will to cooperate in trade and other fields and pointed out some negative factors in the joint work, for example, bureaucracy met everywhere.

The First Far Eastern International Economic Congress became a fundamentally new stage in expansion of economic relations and cooperation attracting investments to the Far Eastern social and economic development. It showed the regional investment potential and possibilities in the sphere of trade and economic collaboration with countries of the Asian Pacific Rim. The Forum attracted attention of the Government to the problems as well as prospects of the Far Eastern economy and proved that the Region could play an important part in the country as a linking point between Europe and Asia.

Ex. 2. Answer the questions.

1. When and where did the First Far Eastern International Economic Congress take place?

2. Why was Khabarovsk chosen as a host city for the Congress?

3. What were the goals of the Congress?

4. What were directions proposed by Academician Nekipelov?

5. What were important issues discussed by the participants?

6. Which projects were considered to be supremely important to the region?

Ex. 3. Find the English equivalents to the following.

Традиционное место проведения, благоприятное расположение, создавать условия, привлекать инвесторов, укреплять систему, экономические связи, политико-социальная стабильность, высокий образовательный уровень, открытость для сотрудничества, основные цели, эффективные пути экономической интеграции, взаимовыгодное сотрудничество, страны АТР, партнерство, экономическое положение, перспективы на международном рынке, по основным показателям, стать сырьевым придатком, пользователи необработанных ресурсов, предложить направления, зарубежные соседи, пленарное заседание, демографическая ситуация, транспортная стратегия, золотодобывающее предприятие.

Ex. 4. Find the Russian equivalents to the following.

Standard of living, preservation of population, to lag behind the rest part of Russia, to stop the outflow, manufacturing industries, prospective constructions, energy supply corridors, business circles, power infrastructure, the international economic community, to breathe a new life into settlement, oil-loading terminal, transit flow of cargo, supremely important, partnership, international relationship, peculiarities of economic zones, aircraft machinery manufacturing, benefits for business, to attract investments, raw material appendage, major goals, mutually beneficial cooperation, background paper, to loose territories, cross border trade, petroleum pipeline.

Ex. 5. Arrange the synonyms in pairs.

Propitious, ties, collaboration, to take part, advantageous, links, major goals, in the field of, to manufacture, to work out, effective, funds, cooperation, to participate, main tasks, finance, highways, to develop, efficient, main roads, dozens of, in the sphere of, to produce, tens of, a number of.

Ex. 6. Prove that:

1. It was necessary to hold the First Far Eastern International Economic Congress.

2. This Congress became an important stage in the economic development of the East of Russia.

3. Social problems should be solved on the government level.

4. Khabarovsk becomes a centre for international cooperation.

Ex. 7. Read the brief information below and speak about the Fair in details.