China-Central Asia cooperation has been pivotal in driving connectivity and development across Eurasia, said Charymuhammet Shallyyev, director of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Institute.
Speaking to China Global Television Network (CGTN) ahead of the second China-Central Asia Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, scheduled for June 16 to 18, Shallyyev emphasized that true economic integration goes beyond mere linkages between nations.
The China-Central Asia nexus of South-South cooperation has been proven to be particularly important for advancing connectivity and raising the trade and growth potential of the Eurasian region, according to the head of the intergovernmental organization headquartered in Urumqi of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
Noting that China and Central Asia have become one of each other's most important economic partners, Shallyyev said that the two sides has been building a community with a shared future featuring mutual support and practical cooperation across various field.
"China provides the region with substantial investments, primarily in the energy sector. Central Asian countries, in turn, support China's grand initiatives and strategies and actively participate in their implementation. It's notable that among Central Asian countries and China, several memorandums of understanding were signed in the digital economy, green development, revitalization of the great Silk Road, Belt and Road Initiative, energy, education, tourism, etc. China has been implementing proactive fiscal policy, prudent monetary policy, and purposeful and consistent foreign economic policy," said Shallyyev.
The first China-Central Asia Summit was held in Xi'an, the provincial capital of Shaanxi in northwest China, in May 2023. It concluded with the Xi'an Declaration, stating that a mechanism for meetings among the heads of state of China and Central Asian countries has been officially established.
The declaration stated the summit will be held every two years alternately in China on the one hand, and in one of the states of Central Asia in alphabetical order on the other hand.
Commenting on the upcoming second China-Central Asia Summit, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Friday that both sides are expected to further consolidate mutual trust, build consensus on cooperation, deepen the synergy of strategies, promote the upgrading of cooperation in various fields, and inject more positive energy into building a closer China-Central Asia community with a shared future.
China-Central Asia cooperation promotes connectivity, growth of Eurasia: expert
