2014年CRI 2017年起香港可由普选产生行政长官 中俄天然气管道东线开工（在线收听）

China's top legislature has made its decision on the election of Hong Kong's chief executive in 2017 at the just-concluded meeting of the NPC's Standing Committee.

The decision says a broadly representative nominating committee shall be formed to choose candidates for the election.

From there, two or three candidates will be chosen to contest the elections for Chief Executive in Hong Kong after obtaining support from at least half the nominating committee.

The NPC decision goes on to say that all eligible electors in Hong Kong will then have the right to vote for any of the candidates.

The Chief Executive-elect then will have to be approved by the central government here in Beijing.

China and Russia have launched the construction of a joint natural gas pipeline in eastern Siberia.

This is part of a gas contract signed between the two countries earlier this year.

Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli has gone to Russia to attend a ceremony marking the construction of the Russian section of the natural gas pipeline.

Under the deal reached back in May, the pipeline will transmit 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas every year to China over a period of 30-years, starting from 2018.

The Russian part of the pipeline will link two gas fields in Siberia with the eastern port city of Vladivostok, covering a total distance of nearly 4- thousand kilometers.