From November 6 to 10, Aleksandr Guliakov, Rector of Penza State University, as part of the delegation of the Penza region, is in China on a working visit. The group is headed by Oleg Melnichenko, Governor of the Penza region. On November 8, the opening of the VI Forum of the Volga-Yangtze Association of Higher Educational Institutions took place.

Over three days, Penza representatives took part in several meetings in Beijing and Nanchang. At a meeting with the Minister-Counselor of the Russian Embassy in the PRC, Ivan Zhelohovtsev, Oleg Melnichenko noted favorable cooperation in the field of research and education. According to him, Penza State University actively cooperates with educational institutions in China.

“Penza State University is working with 11 universities in China; 277 students from China are studying at our university. Aleksandr Guliakov, the Chairman of the Council of Rectors, is with us in the delegation.  I am sure that he will bring new projects,” noted the head of the region.

Students from China successfully master such study fields as “Music”, “Linguistics”, “Physical Education”, “Economics” at PSU.

On November 8, the fourth meeting of the Council for Interregional Cooperation in the Volga-Yangtze format opened in the Chinese city of Nanchang (eastern Jiangxi province) after a three-year break due to anti-Covid restrictions. At the meeting of the Council for International Cooperation in the Volga-Yangtze format, Oleg Melnichenko, together with the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District Igor Komarov and Vice-Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China Zhang Guoqing, discussed the possibilities of developing cooperation between the regions of the Volga Federal District and the provinces of the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The Head of the Sura region voiced ideas for the construction of a tourist facility and a hotel complex in the Penza region.

The opening of the VI Forum of the Volga-Yangtze Association of Higher Educational Institutions also took place in Nanchang. The forum will take place on November 8 and 9. The event brought together representatives of Chinese universities from the provinces of the Yangtze River Valley and universities of the Volga Federal District of the Russian Federation. Igor Komarov, Zhang Guoqing and Oleg Melnichenko took part in the opening ceremony of the Forum.

Igor Komarov and Zhang Guoqing noted its importance for strengthening Russian-Chinese relations. “Within the framework of the partnership between Russia and China, we pay attention not only to deepening and expanding trade, economic, scientific and technical potential, but also strive for strong friendly ties between our youth! After all, the unity and cooperation of our younger generation is the basis of a solid foundation for interstate relations in the future,” noted Igor Komarov.

Oleg Melnichenko noted that cooperation helps universities to more fully reveal their educational and scientific potential. He emphasized that Penza State University has concluded cooperation agreements with 11 institutes and universities in China.

“Several hundred Chinese citizens are studying in Penza universities; Chinese language has been taught in one of the most modern schools in our region since its opening in 2020. This school year, 400 students in grades 6, 7 and 8 are studying Chinese. Modern reality requires us to respond to new challenges,” the Governor commented.

11 higher educational institutions of the Volga Federal District, including Penza State University and Penza State Technical University, and 23 universities in China discussed the educational and scientific potential of cooperation. Following the event, participants outlined vectors for developing humanitarian partnerships.

On November 9, the delegation of the Penza region was in the city of Xi’an, where they inspected the industrial park and visited the Russian-Chinese scientific technological innovation center. On November 10, they will visit The Hi-tech College of Xi'an University of Technology and Xi'an Jiaotong University.

The Volga-Yangtze format was launched by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 to further strengthen cooperation between the regions of the two countries. It provides for interaction in a variety of areas between the regions of the Volga Federal District and the Chinese provinces located in the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River (the provinces of Anhui, Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi and the central city of Chongqing). An integral part of the events has also been the holding of Russian-Chinese youth forums since 2013.

An important project of this mechanism was the creation of the Association of Universities of the Volga Federal District and the provinces of the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, which included 85 educational institutions. The corresponding agreement was signed following the second meeting of the council in June 2017 in the city of Hefei (eastern Anhui province). On the Russian side, its work is supervised by the Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University, and on the Chinese side by Sichuan University. It is planned that next year the next Forum of the Association of Universities will be held in Russia, in one of the regions of the Volga Federal District.

PSU annually takes part in the youth forum in the Volga-Yangtze format and becomes the venue for it in the Penza region. Over the course of several days, students and representatives from China take part in various sessions dedicated to the digital economy and e-commerce, youth entrepreneurship and business creation, culture and tourism.