中俄年內簽署西線天然氣合作協議

China and Russia will seal an agreement this year on piped gas from western Siberia, China’s foreign minister said yesterday, a deal that will continue Russia’s economic shift towards Asia and away from western Europe.

中國外交部長昨天稱，中國和俄羅斯將在今年簽署西線天然氣合作協議，該協議將繼續促使俄羅斯經濟向亞洲轉移、遠離西歐。

Russia’s split with the west over Ukraine has pushed it closer to China, which is eager to develop overland energy supply lines that reduce its dependence on vulnerable sea lanes. China has taken a carefully neutral stance on the Ukraine conflict, while more broadly expressing its support for Russia.

俄羅斯因烏克蘭問題與西方國家鬧翻，這促使其進一步向中國靠近，後者急於發展陸上能源供應線以降低對脆弱的海上通道的依賴。在烏克蘭衝突問題上，中國一直採取謹慎中立的立場，同時在總體上表達對俄羅斯的支持。

The relationship between the two on-again, off-again Cold War allies is “mature and stable”, Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister, told a press conference yesterday. “There is enormous internal impetus and room for expansion.”

對於這兩個分分合合的冷戰盟友的關係，中國外交部長王毅昨天在記者會上稱之爲“成熟、穩定”，並表示中俄務實合作“有着巨大的內生動力和提升空間”。

Much of that expansion will be in oil, gas and nuclear energy co-operation, he added. “We will fully begin construction of the eastern gas line and sign a co-operation agreement for the western line,” he said.

他補充稱，中俄大部分務實合作將在石油、天然氣和核能領域展開。“將會全面開工建設東線天然氣管道並簽署西線天然氣合作協議。”

During a visit to Beijing in November, Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, reached a preliminary agreement for Gazprom, the Kremlin-controlled energy group, to supply China’s state oil company CNPC with 30bn cubic metres of gas per year from the Altai region of western Siberia. However, most of the details are still to be worked out.

在去年11月出訪北京期間，俄羅斯總統弗拉基米爾•普京(Vladimir Putin)爲政府控制的俄羅斯天然氣工業股份公司(Gazprom)達成了一項初步協議，每年從西伯利亞西部阿爾泰地區向國有的中石油(CNPC)提供300億立方米的天然氣。然而，多數細節仍有待敲定。

Beijing expects the deal to be finalised this year, leading to a pipeline that will, for the first time, allow Russia to choose between exporting gas to Asia or to Europe. Russia has also committed to sell gas from its far east to China. In a $400bn deal signed during Mr Putin’s visit to Shanghai in May, Russia agreed to sell up to 38bn cubic metres a year to China.

北京方面預期該協議能在今年敲定，其最終帶來的輸氣管道將使俄羅斯第一次在出口天然氣至亞洲或歐洲的問題上作出選擇。俄羅斯還承諾向中國出售其遠東地區的天然氣。在去年5月普京訪問上海期間簽署的4000億美元協議中，俄羅斯同意每年向中國出售380億立方米天然氣。

Chinese and Russian leaders officially inaugurated construction of the Power of Siberia pipeline last September, but little work can be done during the harsh Siberian winter. The two sides have also disagreed over financing for the projects, with Russia strapped for cash amid sanctions imposed by the West.

去年9月，中國和俄羅斯領導人正式揭牌“西伯利亞力量”(Power of Siberia)管道的建設，但是在西伯利亞嚴寒的冬季期間基本上無法施工。在俄羅斯因受西方制裁而資金緊張的情況下，雙方還在項目的融資問題上發生分歧。

To sweeten the deal for China, Russia has offered Chinese oil companies the chance to invest directly in its upstream. Russia’s deputy premier, Arkardy Dvorkovich, said at an investment forum last month that there are no longer political barriers to China controlling strategic assets.

爲了增加協議對中國的吸引力，俄羅斯向中國石油企業提供了直接投資於上游業務的機會。俄羅斯副總理德阿克迪•沃爾科維奇(Arkady Dvorkovich)上月在一個投資論壇上稱，對中國控制戰略資產不再存在政治障礙。

Increased economic ties with Russia fall under the broader One Belt, One Road strategy of increasing exports and investment in Central Asia, Mr Wang said. China wants to create a new Silk Road economic belt that retraces trade networks active at the height of China’s presence in Central Asia, during the Han dynasty 2,000 years ago, as well as a 21st-century maritime Silk Road that revisits the greatest extent of its sea power during the early Ming dynasty of the 14th and 15th centuries.

王毅稱，中國與俄羅斯加強經濟聯繫，屬於增加對中亞出口和投資的“一帶一路”整體戰略的一部分。中國希望打造全新的絲綢之路經濟帶，並開啓21世紀的海上絲綢之路。前者可以追溯到2000年前的漢朝，當時中國在中亞的存在達到鼎盛時期，而後者則是重溫14及15世紀明朝早期達到的海上活動範圍巔峯。

Rising investment in Central Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia and Africa would allow China to export its surplus capacity in steel, rail and other industries, which is increasingly weighing on its domestic economy.

中國在中亞、東南亞、南亞及非洲地區增加投資，將允許其把日益拖累國內經濟的鋼鐵、鐵路及其他產業的過剩產能出口海外。

An added attraction for energy-hungry China is the creation of overland rail, road and pipe networks, which it views as more defensible than easily blockaded sea routes including the Suez Canal and the narrow Strait of Malacca.

對於渴望能源的中國而言，另一個吸引點在於打造陸上鐵路、公路及管道網。相比蘇伊士運河及狹窄的馬六甲海峽等可以被輕易封鎖的海上航道，中國把陸上路線視爲更可防禦。