The Entrepreneurial Activity of Chinese Migrants on the Border Areas of Russia and China at the Turn of the Centuries: the Features of “Shuttle” Migration in the Context of State and Regional Policy

Abstract

Russia and China have extensive border areas in the Far East. For more than 150 years, Slavic and Confucian civilizations — Russians and Chinese — have been closely involved here. The constant presence and economic activity of Chinese migrants in this region has become a specif-ic feature of the development of the border areas. In the article, the author analyzes the entrepre-neurial activity of Chinese migrants at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, describes in detail the socio-economic conditions and features of state and regional policies in this historical period, and highlights migration movements across the border. This paper addresses important questions: First, how were the entrepreneurial activities of Chinese migrants and their migration movements caused by the socioeconomic situation in the Russian Far East and by the ethnic characteristics of migrants? Second, how did Chinese migrants apprehend changes in state and regional policies on border areas and the opening of borders? Third, how did the border areas serve as platforms for their start-ups and do Chinese migrants consider them to be such plat-forms in the future? Through my analysis, I create a better understanding of the features of the Russian population and Chinese migrants` interaction on the border areas of the Far East, and of the perspectives for Chinese business in the peripheral regions of the conglomerate societies of Russia and China.

Keywords

• Russian-Chinese relations,Chinese migrants,Russian-Chinese border areas,entrepreneurial activity,interaction with the Russian population

References

1. Antonova, N. (2009). Economic cooperation of Russia in the Far East. Spatial Economics, 3,134–158.
2. Bogaturov, A. (2004). System history of international relations.1–4.Moscow, Russia: NOFMO Publishing House.
3. Bogaturov, A.,&Vinogradov, A. (2002). Anclave-conglomerate type of development. The record of transsystemic theory. In E. Rashkovskiy, V. Khoros (Eds.), Vostok-Zapad-Rossiya(pp.109–128).Moscow, Russia: ProgressTraditsiya Publishing House.
4. Chubarov, I.,&Mikhailova, E. (2017). Problems of overcoming the periphery of the Russian-Chinese border region. Russia and the Asian-Pacific Region, 4, 88–105.
5. Gelbras, V. (2001). Chinese reality of Russia. Moscow, Russia: Muravey Publishing House.
6. Guo, Wengui. (1998). Tourism from Heihe to Russia: existing problems and solutions, Heihexuekan, 6, 35–36.
7. Jiang, Xiaohua. (2005). The first Chinese man “enters” into the Russian market of building materials - about the female president of the Heilongjiang Trade and Economic Corporation “Wan Yang” Yang Xiaoli. Shijiqiao, 7, 27–28.
8. Kostyunina, G.,&Baronov, V. (2011). Cross-Border Free Economic Zones in Foreign Countries (from China). Bulletin of MGIMO-University, 2, 169–178.

9. Larin, A. (2003). Chinese people in Russia yesterday and today. Moscow, Russia: Muravey Publishing House.
10. Larin, V. (2001). Envoys of the Middle Kingdom in the Russian Far East. Diasporas, 2-3, 76– 112.
11. Li, Jiagu. (1996).Sino-Soviet Relations (1917-1926). Beijing, China: Scientific Literature Publishing House.
12. Li,Zhuanyun, & Li, Tian. (1997). Migrations of the population in China history. Sichuan Shifan Xueyuan Xuebao, 5, 13–18.
13. Luo, Xiaohui. (2001). About the history of Sino-Soviet relations in the new time. Yanji, China: Yanbian Publishing House.
14. Motrich, E.,&Izotov, D. (2015).Chinese population migration to Russia: reality and prospects. In S. V. Ryazantsev, N. M. Pestereva, M. N. Khramova (Eds.), Migration processes in the Asia-Pacific Region: past, present, interaction and regulation practices(pp.165–168). Vladivostok, Russia: FEFU Publishing House.
15. Nyrova, N. (2004). Chinese companies in cross-border trade and their place in international criminal activity. Problems of the Far East,1, 87–114.
16. Order of the Ministry of Labor of Russia No. 832n dated December 24, 2018. Retrieved fromhttps://rosmintrud.ru/ docs/mintrud/orders/1336
17. Petersen, W. (1958). A general typology of migration. American Sociological Review, 23(3), 256–266.
18. Ponkratova, L. (2015). Transboundary migration of the population in Russian-Chinese interaction: influence of factors and flow transformation. In S. V. Ryazantsev, N. M. Pestereva, M. N. Khramova (Eds.), Migration processes in the Asia-Pacific Region: past, present, interaction and regulation practices(pp. 172–178). Vladivostok, Russia: FEFU Publishing House.
19. Russian State Historical Archive of the Far East, fond 1306, inv.2, file 4, p. 34.
20. Ryzhova, N. (Ed.). (2009).Integration of economic migrants in the regions of Russia. Formal and informal practices. Irkutsk, Russia: “Ottisk” Publishing House.
21. Shao, Miaomiao. (2011). “To play chess without regretting the favorable opportunities” - a visit to the President of the Heilongjiang Trade and Economic Corporation “Wan Yang” Yang Xiaoli. Shenzhou, 30,78–81.
22. Song, Kui, & Chen, Xiujie. (2001). The past and the future of cooperation between Russia and China in the field of tourism. SiboliaYanju,5, 11–16.
23. State Archive of the Amur Region, fond R-480, inv.16, file 56, p. 85.
24. State Archive of the Amur Region, fond R-480, inv.17, file 727, p. 75.
25. State Archive of the Amur Region, fond R-480, inv.17, file 1748, p. 65. Simutina, N.,&Ryzhova, N. (2007). Economic and social interactions in the Blagoveshchensk - Heihe transboundary space. Bulletin of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Science, 5, 130–144.
26. Tkacheva, G. (2000).The demographic situation in the Russian Far East in 1920s and 1930s. Vladivostok, Russia: Dalrybvtuz Publishing House.
27. “World without Borders” released statistics on the reception of tourists from China. Travel Association “World without Borders”. Retrieved fromhttp://www.visit-russia.ru/tags/statistika
28. Xu, Jingxue. (1994). Russian-Chinese trade and cooperation in Northeast Asia. DongouZhongyangyanjiu, 1,18–25.
29. Yakimenko, T. (1996). Some issues of the impact of attracting foreign investment for the Amur Region. Heihexuekan, 1, 64–65.
30. Yin, Jianping. (1997). Labor of foreign workers in the development of the Far East in the initial period. Siboliya Yanjiu, 6, 30–36.
31. Yu, Chen. (2004). The conditions of existence of Chinese merchants in the Far East. Jiangnan Shibao, December 13.
32. Yu, Xiaodong. (2001). Response proposals for the development of trade cooperation between Heihe region and the Amur region. Dongou Zhongyashichangyanjiu, 8,3–6.
33. Zalesskaia, O. (2009). The Chinese migrants in the Russian Far East (1917-1938). Vladivostok, Russia: Science Publishing House.
34. Zhang, Guoxiong. (1996). The main directions and periods of migration in China history. Beijing dasuexuebao, 2, 98–107.
35. Zhang, Zonghai. (2000). Russian-Chinese relations in the Far East region at the turn of the century. Harbin, China: Heilongjiang People Publishing House.
36. Zhuravskaya, T. (2014). Configuration and functioning of social networks in the border region. Spatial Economics, 3, 67–94.