ST. PETERSBURG - Russia's investment in the Far East has been rising as it speeds up the integration with neighboring East Asian countries.

That's an opportunity economists perceive as unaffordable to lose for Chinese financial institutions seeking to make strategic gains.

Great Potential to tap

The Russian government has recently approved a plan to develop its Far East region, aiming to invest hundreds of billions of US dollars in the long-term program.

"It was once not easy for foreign countries to run major businesses in that area, but the Russian government revised its policies in recent years, encouraging trade and investment cooperation with China," Yu Ping, vice president of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, told Xinhua.

A handful of cities in the Far East have established regular contacts with Chinese cities in a bid to discuss the possibility of cooperation, Yu said on the sidelines of the 17th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"The potential there is enormous as the two sides are highly complementary," Yu said.

Vladimir Miklushevsky, governor of the Primorsky territory, told Xinhua that Chinese investors would enjoy a fruitful future in the Far East.

He said the region could facilitate sea transportation for some of China's northeastern provinces and reduce shipping costs. Meanwhile, he noted that the potential has yet to be well explored.