Chile, Russia Agree to Cooperate in Trade, Science, Investment

Moscow and Santiago agreed to cooperate in trade, investment and sciences during a session of the Russian-Chilean intergovernmental commission, the Chilean Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Andres Rebolledo, the head of the Department of International Economic Relations of the ministry, stressed that strengthening of the economic and commercial relations with Russia was a priority for Chile.

"The Eighth Chilean-Russian Intergovernmental Commission concluded today with agreements that would permit to deepen ties between Russia and Chile in areas such as agro-industrial trade, investment and cooperation in education, science and technology," the ministry said in a statement Friday.

Russia has stepped up cooperation with Latin American countries in recent months amid the souring of its relations with the West over the Ukrainian crisis.

According to Russia’s Foreign inistry, in 2014 the bilateral trade turnover between Russia and Chile totaled $885.9 million, an 19.1 percent increase over 2013. In the first half of 2015, Russia’s export to Chile increased by 14 percent compared to the previous year, according to the Chilean custom service.