Spokesperson's Remarks｜Trade between China and Central Asian countries increased by 116% between 2013 and 2024

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Monday that trade between China and Central Asian countries hit a record high of RMB 674.15 billion in 2024, up by 116 percent compared with that of 2013.

In 2013, President Xi Jinping for the first time proposed the initiative of building the Silk Road Economic Belt during his visit to Kazakhstan. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has since become one of the most popular global public goods. The Second China-Central Asia Summit is about to kick off. Guo further introduced the Belt and Road cooperation between China and Central Asian countries and China's expectation for future cooperation at a regular press conference.

Guo said that Central Asia is not only the place where the BRI was first proposed, but also a pace-setter in high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. All five Central Asian countries have signed BRI cooperation documents with China. Together, China and Central Asian countries have implemented a series of signature projects designed to boost development and make lives better for the people.

"Through the China-Kazakhstan Crude Oil Pipeline project and the China-Central Asia Gas Pipeline project, we have found a new model of mutually beneficial cooperation. The China-Tajikistan highway, the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan highway and the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway have taken regional connectivity to new levels. Practical cooperation is expanded to digital economy and green transition. China has mutual visa exemption with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The Luban Workshops project is picking up speed. People-to-people and cultural exchanges have moved onto the fast lane and brought our peoples close to each other. High-quality Belt and Road cooperation is increasingly becoming a key focus of China-Central Asia cooperation."Guo further said. 

Guo pointed out that at the upcoming Second China-Central Asia Summit, heads of state will jointly draw a new blueprint for future cooperation, open up new space for Belt and Road cooperation and build an even closer China-Central Asia community with a shared future. (By Ma Ziqian/China Youth Daily)