MOSCOW, May 31 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese agricultural official said here on Thursday that China will expand scale and regulate agricultural cooperation with Russia.

    China will coordinate with Russia to set up platforms for cooperation and give directions for joint agricultural projects, Zhou Qijiang, deputy director of the overseas economic cooperation center under the Ministry of Agriculture, told a press conference in Moscow.

    China will encourage big agricultural companies to invest in Russia and lead experienced technicians to carry out cooperation in Russia, he said.

    Russia, rich in land and resources but with less population, has become a new destination of Chinese agricultural companies which are rich in know-hows and management experience as well as funds thanks to the three decades of reform in Chinese agricultural sector.

    There have been more than 70 agricultural production bases established by Chinese companies in Russia's far east and the area summed up to 100,000 hectare, according to the ministry's statistics. ¡¡