Xi Jinping, Tokayev meet, praise Sino-Kazakh relations

Chinese President Xi Jinping shakes hands with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Astana, Kazakhstan, July 3, 2024. Photo: Xinhua

Chinese President Xi Jinping said he is ready to work with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to jointly build a more substantial and vibrant China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future, and inject more positive energy into the development and stability of the region and beyond, when meeting with Tokayev at the presidential palace in Astana on Wednesday.

Xi Jinping is paying a state visit to Kazakhstan and will attend the 24th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

President Xi's state visit to Kazakhstan will mark a new milestone in the development of bilateral relations, which are now reaching a new height thanks to head-of-state diplomacy and frequent and cordial high-level bilateral exchanges, observers said.

Xi Jinping also met on Wednesday with leaders of other SCO members or dialogue partners, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, during which they exchanged views on issues of mutual interest as well as the development of the SCO.

According to analysts, as the world today grapples with growing geopolitical tensions, protectionism and Western decoupling attempts that threaten the strategic autonomy of developing countries, face-to-face meetings between the leaders of the SCO member states also provide a rare opportunity to reach consensus and coordinate a common solution to pressing global and regional challenges, such as countering traditional and non-traditional security threats, as well as maintaining multilateralism.

A new tie record

During his meeting with Tokayev on Wednesday, Xi said China's will and determination to maintain and develop bilateral relations are unwavering and will not be affected by any incident or development of the international situation. China will always be a good neighbor and partner that Kazakhstan can rely on and trust, he added.

The Chinese side regards Kazakhstan as a priority in China's neighborhood diplomacy and an important partner for cooperation in Central Asia, Xi said.

Tokayev said Xi Jinping's state visit to Kazakhstan is of historic significance for the development of Kazakhstan-China relations, hailing China as a friendly neighbor, close friend and important strategic partner of his country.

After the talks, the two heads of state signed the China-Kazakhstan Joint Declaration and witnessed the exchange of dozens of bilateral cooperation documents in the fields of economy and trade, connectivity, aviation and aerospace, education and media, according to Xinhua News Agency.

China and Kazakhstan support each other's aerospace institutions and companies in discussing the possibility of commercial use of their respective space launch sites, said a joint statement between China and Kazakhstan released Wednesday.

The two sides also support their aerospace institutions and enterprises in communication and cooperation in the peaceful use of outer space, and promote mutually beneficial cooperation in such areas as the moon and deep space, as well as the reception and exchange of remote sensing data, said the joint statement signed by Xi and Tokayev.

These fruitful outcomes underscore that full-fledged pragmatic cooperation is gaining momentum between the world's second-largest economy and Central Asia's largest economy, as well as a key node of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The fruitful results are also significant for the five Central Asian countries amid the turbulent international context, Chinese and Kazakh scholars said, as they will “inject new vigor” into the region's development, help these nations modernize and move toward globalization, while making significant contributions to regional stability and security.

“This visit clearly demonstrates that China attaches great importance to its relations with Kazakhstan, the high level and unique nature of these bilateral ties, as well as Kazakhstan's vital position in China's foreign diplomacy,” Cui Heng, a researcher at the Shanghai-based China National Institute for International Exchanges and Judicial Cooperation of the SCO, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Analysts said China and Kazakhstan interact through various mechanisms, ranging from head-of-state diplomacy that sets the design at the highest level, to regular meetings between entrepreneurs and dialogues at the local level, which constitute “comprehensive and integrated exchanges” from top to bottom.

Kazakhstan is hosting the SCO summit in Astana this week, and China will assume the rotating SCO presidency for 2024-2025. The Central Asian country will also host the China-Central Asia Summit next year, a key regional cooperation platform.

“The high level of relations between our countries indicates that China and Kazakhstan fully trust each other, develop mutually beneficial cooperation and support each other's initiatives,” Gulnar Shaimergenova, director of the Center for Chinese Studies in Kazakhstan, told the Global Times.

Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU) will open a new branch in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan. Tokayev studied Chinese at BLCU from 1983 to 1984, and the new project has become a symbol of educational exchanges between the two countries, media reported.

BLCU is also where Kazakh President Tokayev studied Chinese from 1983 to 1984. Walking through the campus's cultural exhibition hall on Wednesday, the Global Times reporter saw a photocopy of Tokayev's student ID, which documents his youthful years in China and embodies the everlasting friendship between China and Kazakhstan.

The opening of the Astana branch is expected to play an important role in promoting mutual understanding and exchanges between China and Kazakhstan, BLCU Chairman Duan Peng told the Global Times on Wednesday.

“Kazakh youth will be able to study here and make friends, and the school will become a bridge for mutual learning between different civilizations,” Duan said, noting that the school plans to develop the Kazakh branch into a high-level university with undergraduate, master’s and doctoral programs in the next five years, serving the entire Central Asian region.

Xi and Tokayev jointly attended an opening ceremony of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) via video link on Wednesday.

Li Yongquan, director of Eurasian social development research at the Development Research Center of the State Council, told the Global Times on Wednesday that infrastructure development “perfectly aligns” with China's development strategy and that of Kazakhstan and Central Asia.

“The cooperation between China and Kazakhstan under the Belt and Road Initiative is very pragmatic and has achieved substantial results, setting a global benchmark,” Zhang Xiao, Chinese ambassador to Kazakhstan, told the Global Times in an exclusive interview. He also expressed firm confidence that the two countries will jointly move toward the next golden decade of high-quality cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Analysts say Central Asia is in dire need of infrastructure construction. The implementation of the TITR will transform the landlocked region into a vital corridor between East and West, facilitating its integration into the global supply chain. Meanwhile, China's capacity cooperation with resource-rich Central Asia also injects new impetus and certainty into regional development.

“Through frameworks such as the United Nations, the SCO, the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia and the China-Central Asia Mechanism, the two countries are contributing to advancing a fairer and more equitable global governance system,” Zhang said.

In 2013, Xi Jinping visited Kazakhstan and proposed the idea of ​​building an “economic belt along the Silk Road,” which, combined with the proposal of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, became the BRI. He visited the Central Asian country in 2017 and 2022 to strengthen bilateral ties.

Face to face meetings

Face-to-face meetings between heads of state give rise to many critical discussions and decisions that will affect the future of all forms of cooperation in the Central Asian region and beyond, Maryam Agharabi, research coordinator at the Center for China and Central Asian Studies (CCASC) in Kazakhstan, told the Global Times.

They also provide a rare opportunity to focus not only on bilateral relations and consolidate mutual trust, but above all to strengthen regional integration and jointly address emerging problems amid profound global changes, especially in countering transnational security threats, Kazakh academics said.

“Many countries will also be eager to learn China's experience in security and development, and see how the country brings new momentum to the development of the SCO after 23 years of development,” Cui said.

At the SCO summit chaired by Kazakhstan, the SCO Astana Declaration is expected to be adopted, according to a report by Astana Times.

Zhang said the SCO summit will allow leaders of member states to further promote the “Shanghai Spirit.” SCO member states will hold in-depth discussions on strengthening the SCO's development and cooperation in various fields, thus anchoring the organization's course toward building a community with a shared future, he noted.

The principles of the SCO are increasingly accepted, and more and more countries aspire to join the “SCO family”, injecting stability and positive energy into the security, stability and development of the region, he stressed.