Vladivostok has been a cross-border transit port for Chinese domestic trade since June

A century later, Vladivostok, which was ceded to China by the Qing Dynasty, became a cross-border transit port for domestic trade. Does this mean closer relations between China and Russia, or does the West suggest that Russia may be becoming a vassal of China?

The decision was announced in document 44, 2023, issued by the General Administration of Customs. The document said it agreed to further expand the scope of cross-border transport of domestic goods in Jilin Province, adding the Russian port of Vladivostok as a “cross-border transit port for domestic goods.”

On June 1, Vladivostok officially became a cross-border transit port for Chinese domestic goods.
Vladivostok, a Qing Dynasty Chinese territory, is steeped in sensitive historical memories, and China’s General Administration of Customs documents still refer to it by its current name: “Vladivostok, Russia,” which means “conquest of the East” after the Russian occupation of Vladivostok in 1860.

In a surprise move, China’s Ministry of Natural Resources in February requested that eight names along the border with Russia, including Vladivostok, be inscribed with old Chinese names: Vladivostok added Vladivostok, Ussuriysk added Shuangchengzi, Khabarovsk added Boli, Blagoveshchensk added Hailanpo, Sakhalin Island added Sakhalin Island, Nerchinsk added Nerchinsk, Nikolaevsk added Temple Street, Stanov Mountains added Waxing ‘an Mountains, etc.

Since Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces in northeast China lost their access to the sea, they have been transiting sea cargo through Dalian Port in Liaoning province, a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers. Therefore, making Vladivostok a cross-border transit port for domestic goods will greatly reduce transportation costs. Suifenhe, Hunchun to Vladivostok is closer, only 200 kilometers. In this way, it is also equal to Jilin Province, Heilongjiang Province to open the sea again.

In 1858, after the Qing Dynasty was defeated by Russia, it signed with Russia the Treaty of Aihuihui and the Treaty of Peking, ceding the region to Russia.

The fact that China is able to open the Vladivostok passageway at this moment is interpreted as China is able to open the passageway through Vladivostok and facilitate bilateral trade as Russia is under sanctions from Europe and the United States for its invasion of Ukraine.