Russia wants to partner with PH on railroad construction

Russian Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade Aleksey Gruzdev speaks to reporters on the sidelines of his two-day official visit to Manila. (PNA photo by Joyce Ann L. Rocamora)

MANILA— The Russian government is interested to share its expertise in railroad construction with the Philippines to further increase Moscow and Manila’s ties in the field of infrastructure and transportation, a ranking Russian government official said Wednesday.

“Russia is one of the leading in the sector, we have Russian railway corporations that are like the EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) contractors in the country,” Russian Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade Aleksey Gruzdev said in a press conference on the sidelines of his two-day official visit to Manila.

“When we’re talking about projects abroad, it’s not only railways but also underground constructions, underground railways construction,” he said.

Gruzdev said Russia has about 85,000 kilometers of railways stretched in the state.

“With this, you can understand our experience in the sector and we can share it with our friends in the Philippines,” he said.

Aside from rail transport, Gruzdev said Moscow wants to explore cooperation possibilities with the Philippines in the field of aviation and pharmaceuticals.

“We do hope that this visit would result to contracts, agreements, and joint cooperation,” he told reporters.

The official is in Manila from September 24 to 25 to attend bilateral meetings with high-ranking officials of the Department of Health, Department of Transportation, Department of Trade and Industry as well as the private sector.

The Russian delegation, led by Gruzdev, consists of a number of businessmen representing the leading Russian companies in the field of the pharmaceutical industry, transport and aviation, infrastructure, and energ