China's Xi in Kazakhstan to cement ties
ASTANA: Xi Jinping celebrated China's "eternal friendship" with Central Asia at a summit in Kazakhstan on Tuesday, as the Chinese leader blasted tariffs and sought to assert Beijing's influence in a region historically dominated by Russia. The summit in Astana brought together Xi with the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
At the summit, the group signed a pact of "eternal" friendship as Xi called for closer ties with the resource-rich region. "We should... strengthen cooperation with a more enterprising attitude and more practical measures," said Xi in comments carried by state news agency Xinhua. Central Asia is also seen as a key logistics hub, given its strategic location between China, Russia, the Middle East and Europe.
China has also shown willingness to invest in massive infrastructure projects in the region, part of its Belt and Road initiative that uses such financing as a political and diplomatic lever. In a meeting with Kyrgyzstan's president, Xi called for moves to "advance high-quality construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and foster new drivers of growth in clean energy, green minerals and artificial intelligence". — AFP
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