Makeeva S.B. Regional development of the Moscow region in the context of strengthening and expanding Russian-Chinese cooperation. Russian-Chinese studies. 2026. Vol. 10. No. 1. Pp. 19-30.

Текст статьи на сайте журнала URL: https://rcs.bgu.ru/reader/article.aspx?id=27811 (дата обращения 20.09.2026)

Abstract

The regional development of the Moscow Region in its territorial contiguity with the Russian capital defines significant potential and opportunities for the implementation of international projects with China. The Moscow Region occupies a strategically important position in the system of spatial development of Russia. In modern domestic and foreign literature, the impact of Russian-Chinese cooperation on the development of regional infrastructure in the regions of Central Russia has not been the subject of a separate study. The purpose of this article is to consider the features of the regional economic development of the Moscow Region in the system of expanding strategic cooperation between Russia and China. The research methods were systemic and statistical, which allowed us to identify patterns of involvement of the Moscow Region in the system of interregional Russian-Chinese cooperation. A systemic analysis of the interaction between the Moscow Region and the PRC shows that over the course of several decades since the 1990s, the Moscow Region has built interregional relations mainly with the eastern province of Jiangsu - China's leader in the organization of free economic zones, and the Moscow Region maintained inter-municipal cooperation with cities in the eastern province of Shandong and the southern province of Guangdong. The collaboration between the Moscow Region and China has resulted in the utilization of Chinese expertise, technology, and investment in the development of a network of industrial parks, industrial production zones, and technology implementation zones in the Moscow Region. It has also led to the launch of over 50 joint Russian-Chinese production projects in the Moscow Region, the creation of over 8,000 new jobs for Moscow Region residents, and the investment of approximately $2 billion in Chinese investment in the development of the Moscow Region's economic space. Consequently, in the context of the new geopolitical reality, the «Turn to the East» is particularly relevant for the Moscow Region, and China is becoming the region's most reliable, key, and long-term partner.