The ZabWEF business program “New Horizons” began with a discussion of the prospects for Transbaikalia

The official part of the forum started with the session “Trans-Baikal Territory: a strategic infrastructure hub of East and West.”

The discussion participants reviewed the main approaches to meeting the growing needs of the economy of the Trans-Baikal Territory, the development of the region and its investment attractiveness.

“We are on the verge of big changes.The military-industrial complex is developing, and the field of mining is also receiving a new interpretation.This was once again reminded by the heads of large corporations and foundations, the country’s scientific community - they were the speakers of the first session today,” noted the region’s Minister of Economy Zhargalma Badmazhapova.

The intersection of East and West is the basis for a new economic strategy for the development of the region.The discussion participants are sure of this.

“We are very glad to see colleagues from Mongolia and China today.We are discussing the creation of a trilateral corridor; the Tea Road Foundation is paying special attention to this.This is the second time they have taken part in our forum.It’s also nice to see small businesses from our region, banks, deputies, guests from China and Mongolia, and investors at the forum. We expect productive meetings and mutually beneficial cooperation from the forum,” the minister added.

Deputy Director of the Institute of National Economic Forecasting of the Russian Academy of Sciences Dmitry Kuvalin noted that there will be a significant increase in domestic demand for strategic raw materials, including non-ferrous, rare earth and precious metals.

The main consumers of non-ferrous and rare earth metals in the coming years will be:

• defense-industrial complex;
• civil engineering in Russia;
• energy.

“Precious metals will be purchased to form reliable financial reserves by both states and citizens,” the speaker explained.

We would like to remind you that the second day of the Trans-Baikal Foreign Economic Forum “New Horizons - 2026” has started. For the fourth time, the event became an off-site platform for the Eastern Economic Forum and brought together leading experts and representatives from Russia, China and Mongolia.