Forum lauds enhanced China-Central Asia ties

Collaboration between China and Central Asian countries has deepened and yielded broad-based progress, with officials and experts expecting further joint efforts in a wider range of fields, participants said at the 12th China-Central Asia Cooperation Forum held in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, on Thursday.

The forum, co-organized by the Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation Commission of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Xinjiang government, brought together about 300 domestic and foreign officials, scholars, business representatives and international students from Central Asia.

During the opening ceremony, Shen Yueyue, vice-chairwoman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and chair of the commission, said the "China-Central Asia Spirit" — characterized by mutual benefit, respect, trust and assistance — has fostered enduring friendship and cooperation in pursuit of modernization through high-quality development.

Shen said the forum was built on the results of major recent events, including the second China-Central Asia Summit in Astana in June, the SCO Tianjin Summit from Aug 31 to Sept 1 and the Global Leaders' Meeting on Women in Beijing in October.

She called for the effective implementation of China's four major global initiatives and urged stronger political trust, expanded collaboration under the Belt and Road Initiative framework, deeper security cooperation and greater cultural exchange.

Kyrgyz Deputy Prime Minister Bakyt Torobayev said the China-Central Asia cooperation mechanism has become an indispensable part of regional collaboration, contributing to coordinated planning for sustainable development.

He said attention should be focused on key cooperation areas, including transportation and cross-border connectivity, energy, finance and banking, e-commerce, tourism and agriculture.

Dilrabo Mansouri, deputy prime minister of Tajikistan, said cooperation under the China-Central Asia mechanism has grown in scale and quality, building a solid foundation for shared prosperity based on mutual benefit and respect.

To expand youth exchanges, she highlighted the importance of strengthening educational and business ties and accelerating international vocational training programs.

Rahim R. Hakimov, deputy speaker of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan, said about 4,500 Chinese-invested enterprises are operating in his country.

He said Uzbekistan is focusing on cooperation in green energy, transportation infrastructure, digital technology, value-added processing of raw materials, chemical engineering, agriculture and tourism.

Piao Yangfan, deputy secretary-general of the SCO, told China Daily that Xinjiang, with its geographical and cultural proximity, rich resources and development potential, has played an important role in promoting economic cooperation, maintaining regional security and stability, facilitating connectivity, and fostering people-to-people exchanges and mutual understanding between China and Central Asia.

She expressed confidence that Xinjiang will continue to contribute to China-Central Asia cooperation and benefit from its engagement with the SCO.

At the forum, participating countries jointly launched the 12th China-Central Asia Cooperation Forum (Urumqi) Initiative and 13 cooperation projects. Sub-forums on trade and economics, education, poverty alleviation and women's issues were also held on Thursday.

Wang Haoran contributed to this story.