Treaty of Kulja

Treaty of Kulja
Sino-Russian Trade Regulations for Ili and Tarbagatai
Drafted25 July 1851
Signed25 July 1851
LocationYining
Effective25 July 1851
ConditionRatification by the Qing Dynasty and the Russian Empire
Signatories Yishan
Buyantai
Yegor Kovalevsky
Ivan Zakharov
Parties

The Treaty of Kulja (also spelled Kuldja; Chinese: 中俄伊犁塔爾巴哈臺通商章程; Russian: Кульджинский трактат) was a treaty between Qing China and the Russian Empire, signed in 1851, opening Kulja (Huiyuan and later Ningyuan) and Chuguchak to Sino-Russian trade. Prepared by the first Russian consul to China, Ivan Zakharov, the treaty was preceded by a gradual Russian advance throughout the nineteenth century into Kazakhstan in direct competition with British efforts to impose self-advantageous trade terms on China.