Russia, China agree to limit troops along border

April 24, 1997
Web posted at: 4:55 p.m. EDT (2055 GMT)

MOSCOW (CNN) -- China and four former Soviet republics, including Russia, pledged Thursday to reduce forces along China's 7,000-kilometer (4,000-mile) border, hoping to build a new peace in the East to counter NATO expansion in the West.

The accord -- the result of seven years of negotiations -- was also signed by Kazakstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin, in Moscow for a summit with Russian President Boris Yeltsin, hailed the plan as a step toward a "security model that differs from the Cold War mentality."

Yeltsin has said several times that NATO expansion on Russia's western flank means his country will turn east.

But at a news conference after the signing, Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen insisted the two countries are not trying to ally against the United States or NATO.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.  

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• Russian Political Resources - East Stroudsburg University
• Internet Resources for the Study of China - Boise State University

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