Plans to hand a stretch of remote Siberian territory to Chinese investors have triggered a storm of protest in Russia, underlining how a relationship hailed by the leaders of both countries is being undermined by deep-rooted distrust.
The government of Zabaikalsky Krai, one of the country’s poorest regions, signed a preliminary agreement this month under which Hua’e Xingbang, a private Chinese company, would gain control of more than 1,000 sq km of idle land bordering China on a 49-year lease for Rbs24bn ($440m).
Yet when the plan was made public, Russian politicians and media warned it could lead to an annexation of Russian lands by Beijing.
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