BEIJING—China appears optimistic that negotiations to finalize a large natural gas deal with Moscow can be completed ahead of Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Russia later this month.
Efforts by Russia and energy-hungry China to establish gas ties have been stalled for years, mainly because of disagreement over prices. Russia is eager to link gas prices for China to oil prices in the way it does in Europe, but China views any European-level price as too high.
Assistant Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping said in a news briefing Tuesday about Hu's June 15-18 trip to Russia that a "major breakthrough in natural gas" could be made if talks progress smoothly.
Hu also is to visit Kazakhstan and Ukraine and attend a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
