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Questions and answers
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Hangzhou (People's Republic of China)Expand Collapse
Photo: commons.wikimedia.org
Document: Memorandum of Friendly Cooperation (2002), Agreement on the Establishment of Friendly Relations between the Cities (2003)
Year of foundation: 589
Area: 3068 km2 (2020)
Population: 8.7 million (2020)
Time zone: GMT +8
Official website: http://www.hangzhou.gov.cn/
About the city:
Hangzhou is the capital of Zhejiang Province, located in eastern China. Hangzhou is a transportation hub, a center of textile industry. Engineering, metalworking, chemical, glass, jute, paper, tea-making, and pharmaceutical industries are developed in the city. There is a production of electronics and building materials, traditional handicraft production.
Xihu Lake, located on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The city since 2005 is officially called the "Tea Capital of China". Hangzhou is home to the headquarters of more than 20 cutting-edge IT enterprises, including Alibaba, NetEase and Hikvision. In 2016, the G20 summit was held in Hangzhou.
Joint events, contacts:
2002-2013 - exchange of official delegations and letters.
In June 2013, a delegation fr om Hangzhou came to Kazan to discuss the possibilities of further cooperation. Representatives of the Executive Committee of Kazan and deputies of the Kazan City Duma met at the Kazan City Hall with a delegation led by Mr. Ye Ming, Chairman of the Hangzhou City Committee of the National People's Political Consultative Conference.
In November 2017, a meeting of representatives of the Executive Committee of Kazan with members of the delegation of Hangzhou was organized at the Kazan City Hall. During which the parties discussed the prospects of cooperation and exchange of experience in the field of tourism, culture, sports, etc. The Secretary General of the Hangzhou City Committee, Mr. Xu Min, invited the Deputy Head of Kazan, Evgeniya Lodvigova, to China to demonstrate an electronic system for determining the volume of tourist flow.
In December 2017, the Mayor of Kazan, Ilsur Metshin, visited Hangzhou and took part in a meeting of the UCLG World Council. During the meeting, the results of the study of the international activity of the cities of the Eurasian branch of the organization were summed up. The president of the department, Ilsur Metshin, presented awards to the leaders of the rating.
On December 8, 2017, as part of the meeting of the UCLG World Council, Kazan Mayor Ilsur Metshin and the Deputy Head of Kazan Evgeniya Lodvigova visited the Hangzhou Tourist Counting Center. Ilsur Metshin stressed that some of the methods used at the Center can be implemented in the capital of Tatarstan.
In May 2018, regular mail and cargo flights were launched from Hangzhou to Kazan. Once a week, the airport delivers about 23 tons of international mail to residents of the European part of Russia on a single flight to the capital of Tatarstan.
In September 2018, a presentation of the tourism potential of Kazan was organized in Hangzhou. During the visit, special attention was paid to the issue of expanding cooperation in the field of tourism and the exchange of experience between Kazan and Hangzhou.
On October 15, 2018 in the Kazan City Council a meeting was held between the leadership of the city and the delegation of Hangzhou. They discussed the possibility of exchanging experience in tourism, IT-technologies and sports. Chefs from Hangzhou demonstrated their skills to Kazan colleagues in a restaurant on the territory of Old Tatar Settlement and tasted dishes of Tatar national cuisine.
In May 2019, the Head of the Department of Information Technology and Communications of the Executive Committee of Kazan took part in the Smart Cities conference in Hangzhou.
On November 20, 2019, representatives of the Executive Committee of Kazan met with a delegation from Hangzhou in Kazan. The parties discussed the prospects of cooperation in the IT-sector and in the field of tourism.
On September 23, 2020 in Kazan Vice-Mayor of Hangzhou Ke Jixin presented a speech at the Mayors’ Round Table «Smart City» within Kazan Digital Week-2020.
On October 19, 2020 in Kazan, representatives of Hangzhou took part in the Forum of Twin Cities and Municipalities of BRICS - 2020.
On September 15, 2021, the 8th International Conference of Mayors of the Twin Cities of Hangzhou was held, wh ere representatives of Kazan took part as online listeners.
On September 21, 2021, Vice Mayor of Hangzhou Ke Jixin took part in the Mayors’ Round Table «Evolution of smart cities» within the framework of the International Forum Kazan Digital Week - 2021 with a video message.
In August 2022, a video message from the Deputy Head of Kazan Evgeniya Lodvigova was sent to Hangzhou on the occasion of Hangzhou City Day and the 20th anniversary of the establishment of twinning relations between the cities of Kazan and Hangzhou.
In September 2022, in preparation for the Asian Games, the international GoodTalk forum was held in Hangzhou, Kazan schoolchildren won prizes with their videos.
On September 21, 2022, representatives of Hangzhou took part in a meeting of the Mayors’ Round Table «Digital transformation of management in the city», which was held within the framework of the International Forum Kazan Digital Week– 2022 in Kazan.
On May 4, 2023, a music teleconference was held in honor of the celebration of the anniversary of twinning relations. It united Kazan children's music school №16 named after Lundstrem and Hangzhou Higher Music School №4. The musical express «Childhood Melodies of two cultures: Kazan-Hangzhou 2023» was timed to coincide with the International Jazz Day. The teleconference brought together more than 100 young musicians, their teachers, as well as representatives of the municipalities of the two cities.
On June 21-23, 2024, a delegation from Hangzhou headed by Ms. Wang Wenshuo, Deputy Director of the Publicity Department of CPC Hangzhou Municipal Committee, visited Kazan to participate in the International Forum of the BRICS+ Cities.
Оn November 14-15, 2024, in Kazan a team of chess players from the city of Hangzhou took part in the chess tournament within the framework of the II International Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation» and took 1st place in the team competition.
On November 17, 2024, a meeting was held in Hangzhou between the head of the International Cooperation Department of the Office of International and Inter-Municipal Relations of the Office of the Kazan City Duma, Regina Kozenko, and the Deputy head of the Office of Foreign Affairs of the Hangzhou People's Government, Li Daochao. They discussed the prospects for cooperation in the fields of education, sports and mutual participation in events in 2025.
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Harare (Republic of Zimbabwe)Expand Collapse
Photo: commons.wikimedia.org
Document: Twinning agreement (2011)
Year of foundation: 1890
Population: 2.1 million (2021)
Area: 960 km² (2020)
Time zone: GMT +2
Website: http://www.hararecity.co.zw/
About the city:
Harare is the capital city of Zimbabwe. The city is named after an African tribal chief who led the Zimbabwean people's struggle against the British in 1890. Harare is the largest city in the country and its cultural and industrial center. It is home to many cultural and educational institutions.
On January 11-20, 2025, a delegation from the Republic of Zimbabwe headed by Daniel Garwe, Minister of Local Government and Public Works, visited the Republic of Tatarstan. The delegation included the Mayor of Harare, Jacob Mafume. On January 15, at the Kazan City Hall, a meeting of the delegation with representatives of the Kazan City Hall took place, at which Kazan’s experience in the field of trade, improvement of public spaces, and personnel policy was presented. On January 16, a meeting was held between the Mayor of Kazan, Ilsur Metshin, and the Mayor of Harare, Jacob Mafume. The heads of the two cities discussed cooperation in various areas of the urban economy.
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Harbin (People's Republic of China)Expand Collapse
Photo: Harbin Municipality
Year of foundation: 1898
Population: 9.82 million (2023)
City area: 53.1 thousand km²
Time zone: GMT+8
Website: https://www.harbin.gov.cn/haerbin/c104447/s_index.shtml
About the city:
Harbin is the administrative center of Heilongjiang Province, located in the middle reaches of the Sungari River on the Sunliao Plain. The development of the city is connected with its historical role as the center of the railway network of Northeast China, connected to the Trans-Siberian Railway. The first inhabitants of the city were builders and employees of the Chinese Eastern Railway. In this regard, Harbin has preserved many Russian buildings, including the majestic Orthodox Cathedral of St. Sophia with green domes.
Harbin is known for its unique beauty, extraordinary architecture and atmosphere. It attracts lovers of winter tourism, and the annual International Ice and Snow Festival, held since 1963, makes the city doubly attractive to tourists fr om all over the world. Every year artists from different countries transform more than a hundred thousand cubic meters of ice and the same number of snow into a magical winter city. Harbin is called the «Ice City» for its extraordinary landscapes, beautiful neighborhoods and snowy winters.
Joint activities, contacts:
On 13-18 June, 2006, the official delegation from Kazan visited Harbin, during which a Memorandum of Cooperation between the cities of Harbin and Kazan was signed.
In February 2009, the Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin, as part of a delegation from the Republic of Tatarstan, visited Harbin and took part in the opening ceremony of the 2009 World Winter Universiade.
In May 2015, series of meetings were held to attract students and pupils of educational institutions of Harbin to study the Russian language. Several meetings were held between Kazan Federal University (KFU) representatives and students from two schools to attract students to attend the Bachelor's program in the Russian language. This included meetings with students from the Russian language departments of Harbin University and Heilongjiang University of Science and Technology. There were made presentations about KFU.
On 5-6 September, 2016, an official visit of the Harbin delegation to Kazan led by the Mayor of Harbin, Mr. Song Xibin, took place. During the visit, the delegation met with the President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov and Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin and discussed issues of mutually beneficial cooperation.
On July 9, 2018, a meeting between the Deputy Head of the Kazan Municipality Lyudmila Andreeva and the First Secretary of the City Committee of the Communist Party of China, Mr. Wang Zhaoli was held at the Kazan City Hall. The meeting was also attended by the Head of the Foreign Affairs Office of Harbin Mr. Gao Huimin, Head of the commercial department Mr. Ji Pin, Head of the science and technology department Mr. Li Zhijie, Head of the culture, radio and television broadcasting and press department Gou Qingjie, the Consul General of China in Kazan Mr. Wu Yingqin, Consul of the Consulate General of China in Kazan Mr. Tian Zhi. Presentation of Kazan were made by Deputy Heads of the Kazan Executive Committee Ildar Shakirov and Radik Shafigullin, Head of the Culture Department of the Kazan Executive Committee Azat Abzalov. The parties discussed possibilities of cooperation between Kazan and Harbin in the field of economics and culture.
On July 13, 2018, President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov and Governor of China's Heilongjiang Province Wang Wentao signed an agreement on trade, economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation between the regions in the Kazan Kremlin.
The visit of the Tatarstan delegation, timed to coincide with the VI Russian-Chinese EXPO-2019, took place on June 15-19, 2019. The Action Plan to the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Tatarstan and the People's Government of Heilongjiang Province on trade, economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation was signed in the International Exhibition and Convention Centre of Harbin. Rich program of the visit included various official and business events such as the meeting of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan with the Governor of Heilongjiang Province Wang Wentao, participation of the Tatarstan delegation in the Business Forum «Tatarstan-Heilongjiang» and visiting the exposition of the VI Russian-Chinese EXPO 2019. The delegation of the Republic of Tatarstan headed by President Rustam Minnikhanov opened the Days of Economy and Culture of the Republic of Tatarstan within the framework of the working visit to the city of Harbin of the People's Republic of China.
On September 25, 2019, the Kazan Executive Committee welcomed a delegation from Harbin. The meeting was attended by Deputy Head of the Executive Committee of the capital of Tatarstan Radik Shafigullin, Chairman of the Tourism Development Committee Darya Sannikova and Acting Chairman of the Economic Development Committee Guzel Mingazova. The Chinese delegation included Zhang Wangping, Deputy Mayor of the People's Government of Harbin, Sha Xiaodong, Deputy Head of the Department of Tourism, Broadcasting, Television and Culture, Li Yanan, Deputy Head of the Department of Commerce, Liu Zhengjiang, Chairman of the Administration of Harbin Comprehensive Duty-Free Zone, Ji Yuijia, Head of the Europe and Asia Department of the Foreign Affairs Department of the People's Government of Harbin, and others. The Chinese side expressed its willingness to exchange experience in culture, tourism and education.
In 2021, Kazan and Harbin held an online conference on cooperation between the two cities to exchange experience on coronavirus prevention.
On 6 January 2022, representatives of Kazan participated in the Forum on Strengthening Cooperation between Harbin and the Sister Cities as listeners in an online format.
Harbin representatives took part in the United Cities Forum (UCF) held in Kazan on September 7-8, 2023, within the framework of the International Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation». Mr. Jiang Chuanhai, Vice-Mayor of Harbin, and Cao Ru, director of the Foreign Affairs Office, spoke on «Preservation of Historical Heritage as the Basis of the City's Identity» at the Plenary Session of the Forum. During the event the Harbin delegation headed by Mr. Jiang Chuanhai, Deputy Mayor of Harbin, met with Deputy Mayor of Kazan Evgeniya Lodvigova, wh ere the parties signed the Protocol of the meeting between the representatives of Kazan and Harbin and agreed to develop friendship and mutual understanding between Russian Federation and China.
A delegation from Harbin participated in the International Architectural and Construction Forum «Kazanysh», which was held on December 5-7, 2023 in Kazan. Ms. Chen Jianfei, Chief Architect of Harbin, Director of the Architectural Construction and Research Institute at Harbin Polytechnic University, dedicated her speech to identity as the most important resource for the development of modern cities. During the forum delegates from Harbin participated in discussions and presentations. In addition to active participation in the forum, the delegation from China visited a number of interesting architectural sites and major attractions of Kazan, such as the Kul Sharif Mosque, the Cathedral of Annunciation of the Kazan Kremlin, the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, the Palace of Farmers and the Family Center «Kazan», the City Museum «Panorama» and the House Museum of Vladimir Lenin. The delegates' program included a tour in Kazan State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering and a meeting with First Deputy Director of the Investment Development Agency of the Republic of Tatarstan Insaf Galiev.
On May 16-20, 2024, the Kazan delegation headed by Deputy Head of the Kazan Executive Committee Ildar Shakirov visited the city of Harbin (PRC). As part of the trip, representatives of the Kazan City Hall took part in the Conference on interaction and development of cooperation between Harbin, Shenzhen and the cities of the Russian Federation and visited Pavilion VIII of the Russian-Chinese EXPO. The trip ended with an official meeting of the delegation of the city of Kazan with the leadership of the city of Harbin represented by the Deputy Mayor of the People's Government of the city of Harbin Tan Lewei, the deputy head of the Office of Foreign Affairs of the People's Government of the city of Harbin Wang Ning, and the Deputy Head of the Department of Commerce of the city of Harbin Liu Ming. The parties discussed key areas of cooperation between the cities of Harbin and Kazan.
On June 21-23, 2024, a delegation from Harbin headed by Ms. Wang Ning, deputy director of the Foreign Affairs Office of Harbin Municipality, visited Kazan to participate in the International Forum of the BRICS+ Cities.
On February 6-8, 2025, a delegation from Harbin visited Kazan to participate in the international architectural and construction forum «Kazanysh». Song Liwei, Deputy Head of the Harbin Department of Natural Resources and Urban Planning, made a report at the first meeting of the Architecture and Urban Development Committee of the Association of BRICS+ Cities and Municipalities, the association of chief architects of BRICS+ cities, and at the round table discussion: «Cities on the water. User stories that bring urban residents "on the water"».
On 15-16 October 2025, a delegation from Harbin visited Kazan for a working visit to discuss further cooperation between the sister cities.
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Hebron (State of Palestine)Expand Collapse
Photo: flickr.com/photos/youngshanahan
Year of foundation: c. 2200 B.C.
Population: 199,000 (2021)
City area: 2,900 km2
Time Zone: GMT +2
Website: http://www.hebron-city.ps/
About the city:
Hebron is the largest city in the southern part of the West Bank. It is one of the four Holy cities along with the other "four lands of life": Jerusalem, Tiberias and Safed. In February 2010 the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to include the Cave of the Forefathers in Hebron and Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem as national heritage sites.
Joint events, contacts:
On December 10, 2019 the Kazan City Hall hosted a meeting with a delegation from the Palestinian province of Hebron. The parties discussed the prospects of cooperation - the meeting was attended by representatives of investment companies and manufacturing enterprises of Palestine, the Arab Cultural Center in St. Petersburg.
In 2020, the Mayor of Hebron, Taysir Abu Snenya, sent a video greeting on the 100th anniversary of TASSR.
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Hefei (People's Republic of China)Expand Collapse
Photo: Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Hefei City
Year of foundation: 800 BC
Population: 9 465 881 people
The area of the city: 11,434.25 km²
Time zone: GMT +8
Website: http://hefei.gov.cn/
About city:
Located in central-eastern China, Hefei is the capital of Anhui Province and vice-center of a world-class cluster of cities in the Yangtze River Delta due to its east-west location connecting south and north. Surrounded by Chaohu Lake, one of the five largest freshwater lakes in China, Hefei was born out of water and is beautiful because of the lake. Hefei was awarded with the title of «Civilized City» and «China's Happiest City».
Hefei is a mega-city of second significance in the Yangtze River Delta region and an important center of the «The Belt and Road Portal» initiative, and has developed a comprehensive science and technology center of national significance. Today, Hefei is rapidly developing into a world-class innovation city.
It is an ancient and at the same time young city with more than 2,000 years of history, which gave birth to the city's vibrant culture. In recent years, it has become one of the fastest growing cities in China.
Hefei is one of China's «four major science and education centers», with more than 60 universities and colleges such as the University of Science and Technology of China, 138 academies and more than 1,500 research and development organizations of various types. Hefei is also the second comprehensive national science center approved for construction in China, with 12 major scientific projects already in existence, under construction and in the preliminary research stage.
Currently, Hefei has established friendship relations with 32 cities in 19 countries. The conclusion and establishment of friendship cities has enabled the city to have permanent communication links in Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and Africa and become an important conduit for all-round overseas cooperation and exchange in the areas of economy and trade, science and technology, culture, education, urban construction and health care.
Joint activities, contacts:
A Hefei delegation headed by Xiao Rangjian, Deputy Head of the Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Hefei, attended the United Cities Forum (UCF), which was held on 7-8 September 2023 in Kazan as part of the International Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation». During the visit, a Memorandum of Mutual Understanding on deepening co-operation and exchanges between the cities of Kazan and Hefei was signed.
Vice-Mayor of Hefei participated in the online format in the Mayors' Round Table at the annual international forum Kazan Digital Week-2023.
The Party Secretary of the Education Group of Hefei Municipal School No.1, Feng Anbao, took part online in the session «School Exchanges as a Key for Intermunicipal Cooperation» within the framework of the II International Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation», which was held on November 14-15, 2024 in the city. Kazan. A team of chess players from the city of Hefei took part in a chess tournament as part of the Forum.
On August 18, 2025, the Hefei team took part online in the Friendly Chess Tournament between teams from sister and partner cities of Russia and China as part of the III International Business Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China – Mutually Beneficial Cooperation».
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Qingdao (People’s Republic of China)Expand Collapse
Photo: qingdao.gov.cn
Document: Agreement on Establishing Sister City Relations between the City of Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan (Russian Federation) and Qingdao, Shandong Province (People's Republic of China) (2024)Year of foundation: 1891
Area of the city:11,292 km²
Population: 10.3 million (2024)
Time zone: GMT+8
About city:
Qingdao is a sub-provincial city in eastern China, known for its beaches, historic architecture, and brewing culture. It is located on the coast of the Yellow Sea in Shandong Province and serves as an important seaport, economic, and tourist center.
In 2016, Qingdao ranked 12th among Chinese cities by GDP and was among the top ten global ports by tonnage and container throughput for the same year.
Joint events and contacts:
In 2021, official representatives from the cities of Xiamen and Qingdao proposed establishing sister city relations with Kazan. In August 2021, an online meeting was held at the level of international departments to identify possible areas for further cooperation.
On March 1, 2022, the first Kazan-Qingdao International School Forum was held on the theme: «The Flame of the Beijing Winter Olympics: Dialogue of Schoolchildren. Together for a Common Future», as part of a cooperation program for Kazan and Chinese students timed to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Participants included students from the Qingdao Experimental School and the Polylingual Educational Complex «Adymnar» in Kazan.
On March 3, 2022, an international lesson titled «Dialogue of Two Civilizations: Spring Festival in the Traditions of Our Peoples» took place. The event brought together students, teachers, and municipal officials from Kazan, Qingdao, and Jinan, Shandong Province. The joint lesson began with a performance of the song «Together We Face the Future»—dedicated to the 2022 Olympics—by students from Kazan and Qingdao. The song was performed in English, Chinese, Russian, and Tatar, with the Russian and Tatar parts delivered by students from the Polylingual Educational Complex «Adymnar» in Kazan. The international lesson became a highlight event in Qingdao, attracting public and media attention. It was covered by multiple local publications and television outlets. Additionally, in March 2022, in collaboration with the International and Intermunicipal Relations Department of the Kazan City Council and the Foreign Affairs Office of the Qingdao Municipal People's Government, an international online exhibition of children's creativity, titled «Kazan-Qingdao 2022: Together for a Common Future!», was held. The participants were schoolchildren aged 11–15, including twenty students from Kazan, all of whom received certificates.
On June 21-23, 2024, a delegation from Qingdao, led by Mr. Song Mingjie, Deputy Mayor of Qingdao, visited Kazan to participate in the International Forum of BRICS+ Cities.
Deputy Director of the Qingdao Experimental School, Yang Rui, participated online in the session «School Exchanges as a Tool for Inter-Municipal Cooperation» as part of the 2nd International Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China – Mutually Beneficial Cooperation», which took place on November 14-15, 2024, in Kazan.
On November 18, 2024, in Kunming, on the sidelines of the Chinese International Conference «Cities of Friendship», the head of the International Cooperation Department of the Office of International and Inter-Municipal Relations of the Kazan City Duma, Regina Kozenko, met with the Deputy Head of the Office of Foreign Affairs of the People's Government of Qingdao, Dean Anhui. Prospects for cooperation in education, sports and mutual participation in events in 2025 were discussed.
On November 27, 2024, a teleconference was held between the Polylingual Educational Complex «Adymnar» in Kazan and the Qingdao Experimental School. The main topic of the online lesson was «Chinese and Tatar Literature».
From May 28 to June 3, 2025, a delegation from the Polylingual Educational Complex «Adymnar» in Kazan visited Qingdao. The group consisted of 12 students and three teachers. The host was Experimental School No. 1 in Qingdao.
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Qiqihar (People's Republic of China)Expand CollapseDeputy Head of Education Department of Qiqihar City Wang Kuan took part online in the session “School Exchanges as a Key for Intermunicipal Cooperation” within the framework of the II International Forum “SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation”, which was held on November 14-15, 2024 in Kazan. A team of chess players from the city of Qiqihar took part in a chess tournament as part of the Forum.
Photo: Foreign Affairs Office of the Qiqihar People's Government
Document: Protocol of Intentions between Kazan, Qiqihar, Guangzhou, Ufa, Yekaterinburg and Khabarovsk
Year of foundation: 1691
Population: 4.07 million (2022)
The area of the city: 42469 km2
Time zone: GMT +8
Website: http://www.qqhr.gov.cn/
About city:
Qiqihar is the second largest city in China's Heilongjiang Province and one of the oldest cities in North-Eastern China. It was one of the first Chinese cities to actively develop industry. The city's economy is based on metallurgy and heavy engineering.
Qiqihar is popularly known as the «City of Cranes», which attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world.
Joint activities, contacts:
In 2017, in the Kazan City Hall, there was a meeting of representatives of the Kazan Executive Committee with the delegation members from Qiqihar. During the roundtable, the parties discussed aspects of cooperation in tourism, sports and education, as well as the possibility of establishing twin-city relations.
On 17 June 2022, a 6-party agreement between Kazan, Ekaterinburg, Ufa, Khabarovsk and the Chinese cities of Guangzhou and Qiqihar was signed. The meeting was organized via videoconference between the cities of Russia and China.
On 21 September 2022, Sun Heng, Vice-Mayor of Qiqihar, made a report at the Mayors' Round Table «Digital Transformation of City Management», which was held as part of the International Forum Kazan Digital Week - 2022 in Kazan.
On 21 April 2023, the online chess competition «Friendship of Peoples» was held. It united teams from Kazan, Ufa, Khabarovsk, Yekaterinburg, Guangzhou and Qiqihar. It was the first cooperative event after the signing of the six-party agreement between the cities of Russia and China in 2022, and was aimed at strengthening friendly relations. It was organized by the administration of Ufa.
Sun Heng, a Vice-Mayor of Qiqihar took part in the event «United Cities Forum» (UCF), which was held on 7-8 September 2023 in Kazan in the framework of the International Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation». A team of chess players from Qiqihar took part in a chess competition as a part of the Forum.
On the 1st of November 2023, an online roundtable meeting of the protocol of intent participants between the cities of Kazan, Yekaterinburg, Ufa, Khabarovsk, Guangzhou and Qiqihar was held. Mr. Han Fangbao, the Head of the Foreign Affairs Office of Qiqihar City, participated in the event.
On December 5-7 2023, the Qiqihar delegation took part in «Kazanysh», the International Architecture and Construction Forum, which was held in Kazan.
From May to June 2024, an exhibition of the urban landscape “Six Cities of Two Countries” of China and Russia was held in Qiqihar, timed to coincide with the 2nd anniversary of the signing of the “Protocol of Intent on Cooperation between the Six Cities.” To participate in the photo exhibition, 12 photographs of the main attractions of the capital of Tatarstan were sent to Qiqihar.
In April-May 2025, an online competition «Impression of the City» was held, organized by the People's Government of Qiqihar among school students, students and residents of Kazan aged 8 years and older.
On August 18, 2025, the Qiqihar team took part online in the Friendly Chess Tournament between teams from sister and partner cities of Russia and China as part of the III International Business Forum «SPROUTS: Russia and China – Mutually Beneficial Cooperation».
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Chengdu (People's Republic of China)Expand Collapse
Photo: flickr.com/photos/petermolnareu
Document: Memorandum of Friendship (2015)
Year of foundation: 311 B.C.
Population: 4.3 million (2021)
City area: 885.61 km2 (2021)
Time Zone: GMT +8
Website: http://www.chengdu.gov.cn/
About the city:
Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan Province, located in southwest China. Chengdu is a global transport and economic center. For its rich natural resources, mild climate and abundance of cultural and historical sights, Chengdu is called "Paradise on Earth"; it's a historic city with a 3000-year of history. A symbol of luxury and wealth, brocade is still on the basic list of products produced in the province: Chengdu's second name is "Jincheng" (Brocade City). Chengdu is home to the world's largest one-piece structure, the New Century, and is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records. It is also China's premier giant panda nursery region.
Joint activities, contacts:
On November 13, 2015, a Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of Friendly Cooperation between the cities of Chengdu and Kazan was signed in Kazan. The document provides for cooperation in culture, tourism, trade, and education. The signing ceremony was performed on behalf of the People's Republic of China by Tang Chuanping, Chairman of the Chengdu Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and on behalf of the Kazan City Hall by Azat Nigmatzyanov, First Deputy Head of the Kazan Executive Committee for Urban Development Policy.
In 2015, a representative of the Kazan City Executive Committee was sent to Chengdu for free training under their partner exchange program.
In 2016, two delegations from the capital of Tatarstan, led by Evgeniya Lodvigova, Deputy Head of the Kazan Municipality, visited Chengdu.
Representatives of Kazan took part in the First International Innovation Forum of mayors of partner and twin cities of Chengdu on the invitation of the administration of the Chinese city. There is an agreement between the Kazan Zoobotanical Garden and the Chinese Natural Reserve of the Great Pandas on the exchange of specialists.
In August 2018, students of schools of the Russian Federation participated in the China Girls Mathematical Olympiad (CGMO) in Chengdu. According to the results of the competition, Anna Sedova, a student of KFU IT Lyceum, became the winner.
On April 21-25, 2019, a delegation from Kazan Federal University visited the People's Republic of China (Chengdu, Zigong) at the "One Belt, One Road" International Education Forum.
On September 19, 2019, KFU signed an agreement with Chengdu Weiming Beida high school.
On May 27, 2020, Mr. Jiang Bin, head of the Office of Foreign Affairs of the Chengdu City People's Government, sent a video greeting on the 100th anniversary of TASSR.
On September 23, 2020, Mr. Wang Pingjiang, Vice Mayor of Chengdu City, made a speech in online format «Traffic Management System» at the Smart City Mayors' Round Table within the International Forum Kazan Digital Week 2020.
On October 20, 2020 the representative of Chengdu Ms. Zhang Zhiying (Head of Eurasian Relations Department of Chengdu Municipal Office of Foreign Affairs) took part in the Forum of Twin Cities and Municipalities of BRICS - 2020 (as a listener of plenary session), which took place in Kazan in the online format.
The representatives of Chengdu took part in the 17th World Conference of Historic Cities “Historical and Cultural Heritage as the Basis of National Cultural and Local Identity", which was held in Kazan on June 24-26, 2021.
From February 15 to May 15, 2021 in cooperation with the Secretariat of the World Organization "League of Historic Cities" in the framework of the 17th World Conference of Historic Cities in Kazan was held the International Online Children's Drawing Contest "I see the world: traditions of the peoples of the world". The participants were children aged 9 to 13 years old, among the winners were pupils from Chengdu.
In December 2021, the Deputy Mayor of Kazan Evgeniya Lodvigova made a report at the Forum on the occasion of the 5th anniversary of the signing of the agreement between Sichuan Province and the Republic of Tatarstan, which was attended by the President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, the Governor of Sichuan Province Mr. Huang Qian, the Mayor of Chengdu and others.
On January 25, 2022, an online conference between Chengdu and its Russian sister cities was held. The conference was devoted to the issues of further cooperation between the cities, also the prospects of interaction were defined and cooperation plans for 2022 were outlined. Representatives of the Kazan City Duma took part in the conference.
In 2022, 10 children's choral groups from Kazan participated in the 6th International Festival "Children's Choral Singing Week" held in the partner city of Chengdu in an online format. The main goal of the festival is to develop children's and youth creative and cultural exchanges, joint events and master classes.
On September 21, 2022, representatives of Chengdu participated in the Mayors' Round Table "Digital Transformation of City Management", which was held as part of the International Forum Kazan Digital Week - 2022 in Kazan.
On February 14, 2023, students from secondary school No. 9 in Kazan held an online meeting "Let's Get to Know Each Other: Customs and Traditions of the Tatar People" with students from secondary school No. 2 in Chengdu, Lunquan Province (China). The event is held within the framework of the Year of National Cultures and Traditions announced in Tatarstan. About 100 people from Russia and China took part in the teleconference.
On May 16, 2023, a videoconference between schoolchildren from Kazan and Chengdu was held, organized by Kazan High School No. 9. The students made and showed short films about their school days and holidays, as well as communicated in a question-and-answer format.
Jiang Bin, head of the Foreign Affairs Office of Chengdu People's Government, took part in the United Cities Forum (UCF), which was held on September 7-8, 2023 in Kazan as part of the International Forum "SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation ".
The representative of Chengdu Zeng Liang took part in the International Architectural and Construction Forum "Kazanysh", which was held on December 5-7, 2023 in Kazan, making a report on global trends in master planning of territories.
In 2024, Kazan schoolchildren from secondary school No. 9 prepared and sent a creative congratulations on the Spring Festival to the sister city of Chengdu in video format.
Representatives of Chengdu visited the Kazan pavilion at the World Youth Festival in Sochi, which took place on March 1-7, 2024.
Vice Rector of the Chengdu Subordinate School of the Second Beijing Foreign Language Institute in Chengdu Zhou Ya took part online in the session “School Exchanges as a Key for Intermunicipal Cooperation” within the framework of the II International Forum “SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation”, which was held on November 14-15, 2024 in Kazan.
On November 18, 2024, in Kunming, on the sidelines of the Chinese International Conference «Cities of Friendship», the head of the International Cooperation Department of the Office of International and Inter-Municipal Relations of the Kazan City Duma, Regina Kozenko, met with representatives of the Office of Foreign Affairs of the Chengdu People's Government. They discussed the prospects for cooperation in the fields of education, sports and mutual participation in events in 2025.
On July 26-30, 2025, the musical group «KuKuRuZa» of the Kazan School of Rock took part in the International Youth Music Festival of the Twin Cities in Chengdu.
On September 20-28, 2025, the Chengdu delegation participated in the BRICS Youth Festival. In the BRICS Youth Olympiad in Mathematics, representatives of the delegation took second and third places. Within the framework of the festival, on September 23, the Meeting of the Committee on Youth Policy and Education of the BRICS+ Association of Cities and Municipalities took place, at which Zhou Zhuguang, a representative of the Sibei Chengdu School, made a presentation.
On October 15-16, 2025, a delegation from the Chengdu People's Government paid a working visit to Kazan aimed at strengthening twinning ties. 2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of friendly relations between the cities of Kazan and Chengdu. In honor of this event, representatives of Chengdu presented a certificate attesting to the donation of a sculpture of a large panda to Kazan as the embodiment of long-term friendship between the twin cities.
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Shumen (Republic of Bulgaria)Expand Collapse
Фото: commons.wikimedia.org
Document: Treaty of Cooperation (2003)
Year of foundation: 1153
Population: 49,000 (2020)
Area: 136.358 km² (2020)
Time zone: GMT +2
Website: http://www.oblastshumen.icon.bg/
About the city:
Shumen province is a province in northeastern Bulgaria. The administrative center is the town of Shumen. Shumen is a large industrial center, the main branches of economy are mechanical engineering, processing of non-ferrous metals, chemical and food industries. Shumen is also known for its vineyards.
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Shenzhen (People's Republic of China)Expand Collapse
Photo: flickr.com/photos/zuk0
Year of foundation: 1979
Population: 12 million (2020)
Area of the city: 1997.27 km² (2020)
Time zone: GMT +8
Website: http://www.sz.gov.cn/
About the city:
Shenzhen is a major industrial, financial and transport center located in the south of China. Shenzhen is renowned as one of the largest centers of the electronics and electrical industry. Most of Apple's products are manufactured in Shenzhen. According to a ranking by the website Tech Insider (a division of Business Insider), Shenzhen is among the most tech-savvy cities in the world. As of 2019, Shenzhen was ranked as the second best Chinese city for doing business.
In 2008, Shenzhen joined the UNESCO Creative Cities Network for Design, and in 2011 it hosted the 26th World Summer Universiade.
Joint activities, contacts:
Cooperation in the field of sport.
In 2011-2012 Kazan learnt the experience of hosting the Universiade from Shenzhen.
Athletes from Shenzhen took an active part in the XXVII World Summer Universiade 2013 in Kazan.
On 14-16 October 2019, a delegation from Shenzhen University, consisting of Prof. Joshua Huang, visited the Institute of Computational Mathematics and Information Technology of Kazan Federal University (KFU IVMIT).
On September 23, 2020, representatives of the Smart Transportation Department of the Shenzhen Transportation Bureau participated as online listeners in the Smart City roundtable of city mayors as part of the Kazan Digital Week 2020 International Forum.
On 19 of October 2020, the Vice-President of Shenzhen Green Building Association, Su Zhigang, participated in the BRICS Friendship Cities and Municipalities Forum 2020 (with a presentation) in Kazan in an online format.
On September 21, 2021, Shenzhen vice Mayor Zheng Hongbo participated online in the mayors' roundtable discussion «The Evolution of Smart Cities» as part of the Kazan Digital Week 2021 International Forum.
Gu Ting, Vice President of Shenzhen People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, took part in the United Cities Forum (UCF), which was held on September 7-8, 2023 in Kazan within the framework of the International Forum "ROSTKI:Russia and China - mutually beneficial cooperation".
From October 25 to 28, 2023, a Kazan delegation led by Radik Shafigullin, Deputy Head of the Kazan Executive Committee, visited the China Public Security Expo, which included the Digital City World Congress, the Digital Government Development Forum, and the Digital Energy Summit.
On April 2024, a student of Kazan Lyceum No. 131 Alexandra Romashova became the winner of the 58th International Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad. The award ceremony took place in Shenzhen.
A team of chess players from the city of Shenzhen took part in the chess tournament within the framework of the II International Forum “SPROUTS: Russia and China - Mutually Beneficial Cooperation”, which was held on November 14-15, 2024 in Kazan and took 3rd place in the team competition.
On March 17, 2025, the first teleconference took place between the municipal Autonomous educational institution for children with outstanding abilities, the Secondary Boarding School Specialized Olympiad and Scientific Center "SOLNCE" in the Vakhitovsky district of Kazan and the experimental school of Arts and Sciences named after Ke Zhuang Group in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Within the framework of the event, an agreement on cooperation between educational institutions was signed, which is aimed at improving the effectiveness of the educational process and developing an intercultural dialogue between the cities of Kazan and Shenzhen.
On April 8, 2025, the second teleconference was held between the secondary boarding school Specialized Olympiad and Scientific Center "SOLNCE" in the Vakhitovsky district of Kazan and the experimental school of Arts and Sciences named after Ke Zhuang Group in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province.
Students of the secondary boarding school "Specialized Olympiad and Scientific Center "SOLNCE" of the Vakhitovsky district of Kazan and the experimental School of Arts and Sciences named after Ke Zhuang Group of Shenzhen, Guangdong Province held the third teleconference dedicated to the theme "I want to be friends!".
On June 11-20, 2025, a delegation from the SOLNCE School visited the Ke Zhuang School in Shenzhen to participate in the English language festival «Symphony of Civilizations, Harmony through Mutual Learning. The exchange program of Russian-Chinese twin schools».
On August 18, 2025, the Shenzhen team took part online in the Friendly Chess Tournament between teams from sister and partner cities of Russia and China as part of the III International Business Forum «SPROUTS:Russia and China – Mutually Beneficial Cooperation».