China and Central Asia open up new avenues for interconnectivity and connectivity

Promoting inter regional connectivity

According to the project plan, the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway starts from Kashgar, Xinjiang, passes through the Turgat Pass and enters Kyrgyzstan, then goes west through the small border town of Karasu, reaching the important city of Andijan in eastern Uzbekistan. In the future, it can extend to West Asia and South Asia. Experts generally indicate that the completion of the China Kyrgyzstan Ukraine Railway will greatly promote the connectivity of the three countries, injecting strong impetus into the economic and social development of the three countries, Central Asia, and even the wider region.

Yang Bo, a professor at the Russian East European and Central Asian College of Shanghai Foreign Studies University, stated that the China Kyrgyzstan Ukraine Railway will completely break the geographical limitations of the Central Asian region, shorten the transportation cycle of Central Asian export products to major markets around the world, inject new momentum into the integration of Central Asia into the global industrial and supply chain, and promote the economic development and efficiency of Central Asian countries.

The China Kyrgyzstan Ukraine Railway is a microcosm of China's recent interconnectivity with Central Asia. Cui Zheng, Director of the Russian East European and Central Asian Research Center at Liaoning University, told reporters that China and the five Central Asian countries have successfully built a large number of mutually beneficial cooperation projects, including the China Kazakhstan crude oil pipeline, the China Central Asian natural gas pipeline, the China Ukraine Pengsheng Industrial Park, and the China Tajikistan Ukraine Highway, which have widely benefited people from various countries in the region. At the same time, China and the five Central Asian countries have also brought prosperity and stability to all parties and regions through dialogue and cooperation within multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, CICA, and China+the Five Central Asian Countries.

"The cooperation between China and Central Asia is comprehensive, including politics, economy, security, humanities and other aspects." Yang Jin, deputy director of the Central Asia Research Office of the Russian Institute of Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told reporters that, especially since the "the Belt and Road" initiative was put forward, the cooperation between the two sides has been improved and upgraded. Central Asia has become a "demonstration area" for the construction of the "the Belt and Road". China and the five Central Asian countries have achieved full coverage of the signed cooperation documents for the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road".

Taking Uzbekistan as an example, Cui Zheng said that the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" has become a new engine of China Uzbekistan comprehensive strategic partnership. China has maintained Ukraine's position as the largest trading partner and source of investment for many years. A number of key cooperation projects, such as the China Central Asia Natural Gas Pipeline, the Kamchik Tunnel of the Anglian Pap Railway, and the Navoi PVC Complex, have brought tangible benefits to the lives of the two peoples.

The construction of the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway will also bring more opportunities to Uzbekistan. Azamat Sheitov, an expert at the Institute of Advanced International Studies at the Uzbekistan University of World Economy and Diplomacy, stated that the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway will enhance Uzbekistan's export capacity, strengthen its key role as a transit hub, increase trade volume and industrial cooperation scale, and enhance investment attractiveness.

Local authorities are accelerating cooperation with Central Asia

The significance of the China Kyrgyzstan Ukraine Railway, which starts from Kashgar, Xinjiang, for the opening and development of Xinjiang, especially southern Xinjiang, is self-evident. In recent years, the pace of cooperation between Xinjiang and Central Asian countries in economic and trade fields has been accelerating. Data shows that in the first four months of this year, the import and export value of Xinjiang to the five Central Asian countries increased by 28.1% year-on-year, accounting for 67.4% of Xinjiang's total foreign trade import and export value during the same period. The total foreign trade import and export value of Kashgar region was 33.09 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 64.7%. The top three trading partners in Kashgar region are all Central Asian countries. In recent years, Xinjiang's tomato sauce, nuts, and other products have been exported to Central Asian countries, which are highly welcomed by local consumers. At the same time, more and more high-quality Central Asian specialty products such as flaxseeds and sunflower seeds have also entered the Chinese market through Xinjiang ports.

Energy cooperation is also a key area of cooperation between Xinjiang, China and Central Asian countries. Central Asian countries generally have abundant and stable wind energy resources, good light transparency, and a favorable natural environment for developing clean energy. In recent years, with the continuous development of the economy and society, Central Asian countries have faced varying degrees of power supply shortages. Therefore, local governments have actively promoted cooperation between Chinese enterprises and local enterprises in the energy field. Xinjiang Goldwind Technology Co., Ltd., as an enterprise that accounts for 50% of China's export wind turbine market, has currently provided wind turbine products for three projects in Central Asia, including two 65 MW wind power projects located in Kazakhstan and one 521 MW wind power project located in Uzbekistan.

Not only Xinjiang, but also Shaanxi, Jiangsu and other places are accelerating their cooperation with Central Asia. The first China Asia Summit was held in Xi'an, Shaanxi last year. Yang Jin stated that Xi'an is one of the central cities in the central and western regions, especially in the western region, and also one of the fastest developing cities. It is the economic, cultural, and transportation center of the western region, and has achieved full coverage of passenger routes to the five Central Asian countries. Most of the China Europe freight trains depart from Xi'an or pass through Xi'an, passing through Central Asia and heading towards Europe.

The reporter learned from the Shaanxi Provincial Council for the Promotion of International Trade that in order to implement the Shaanxi related achievements of the China Central Asia Summit and further strengthen economic and trade cooperation between Shaanxi and Central Asia, a Shaanxi economic and trade delegation organized by the Shaanxi Provincial Council for the Promotion of International Trade, with more than 20 provincial enterprises including Shiyang Group, Yuneng Chuangli, and Youfa Group, has visited Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, and carried out a series of economic and trade docking activities. Through this visit, Shaanxi enterprises have gained a profound understanding and recognition of the economic development status, cooperation potential and prospects, import and export trade policies, investment and business environment of Central Asian countries. The accompanying enterprises have reached preliminary cooperation intentions with local enterprises in various fields such as construction steel, chemical raw materials, edible oil processing, pharmaceuticals, and international trade.

During the visit to Kyrgyzstan, the Shaanxi Provincial Council for the Promotion of International Trade held a China (Shaanxi) - Kyrgyzstan Enterprise Economic and Trade Exchange Conference. The leaders of the two companies had exchanges and negotiations around agriculture, minerals, food, logistics, building materials, cultural tourism, machinery, shipping, new energy and other fields. Wei Cuncheng, Chairman of Shaanxi Shiyang Group Agriculture Co., Ltd., stated that through this visit, the company has gained a preliminary understanding of the investment environment in Jilin. The company is interested in further understanding Jilin's animal husbandry, agricultural product processing industry, laws and regulations, animal and plant inspection and quarantine, and conducting on-site inspections in order to carry out cooperation.