Power of Siberia comes to State Duma

History of Russian-Chinese talks around the Power of Siberia pipeline, which are ongoing for nearly a year, is coming to its final stage. The Russian Government has sent a draft law on ratification of the agreement with the Government of China on cooperation in the field of natural gas supplies to China on the eastern route to the State Duma. The agreement, the validity of which is 30 years, was signed by Gazprom and CNPC in May last year. It provides the basic parameters of the design, construction and operation of the gas pipeline.

The importance of the document is that, according to the agreement, it shall enter into force after it will be ratified.
In fact, there is no intrigue about the fate of the bill,. All parliamentary groups, with the exception of a few deputies, strongly support the development of all sorts of ties with China. And, according to the deputies, the gas contract plays a disruptive role. It unties the hands of Russia that were twisted by the European Union, which, in turn, as the State Duma believes, constantly playing the "gas card" for political purposes.