Beijing : Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday unveiled a grand plan for Central Asia’s development, from building infrastructure to boosting trade, reports Reuters.
China is ready to coordinate development strategies with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and promote the modernisation of all, Xi said in an address to a China-Central Asia Summit in northwest China.
“This summit has added new impetus to the development and revitalisation of the six counties, and injected strong positive energy into regional peace and stability,” Xi said later at a press conference with his Central Asian counterparts.
“We will jointly foster a new paradigm of deeply complementary and high-level win-win cooperation.”
The five former Soviet republics, with a network of trade corridors, offer China alternative routes to transport fuel, food and other commodities in the event of disruptions elsewhere.
“China is ready to help Central Asian countries improve their law enforcement, security, and defense capability construction,” he said.
China would also upgrade bilateral investment agreements and increase cross-border freight volume with the region, Xi said.
It will encourage Chinese-funded businesses in Central Asia to create more jobs, build warehouses, and launch a special train service aimed at promoting tourism, he added.
Two-way trade between China and Central Asia hit a record $70 billion last year, with Kazakhstan leading with $31 billion, as China seeks deeper links in its quest for greater food and energy security.
Xi said the building of Line D of the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline should be accelerated.
He also called on China and Central Asia to increase their oil and gas trade, develop energy cooperation across industrial chains, and boost cooperation on new energy and the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
In the longer term, China supports construction of a cross-Caspian Sea international transport corridor, and would strengthen the construction of transport hubs of China-Europe freight train services, Xi said.
