From May 18 to 19, 2023, the China-Central Asia Summit will be held in Xi'an, Shaanxi. During the summit, the heads of state of the six countries will exchange views on building a China-Central Asia cooperation mechanism and building a new transportation and trade corridor. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations 31 years ago, the trade volume between China and the five Central Asian countries has increased by more than 100 times, reaching US$70.2 billion in 2022. In the past 20 years, China has been the main source of direct investment in Central Asian countries, with a total investment of nearly 40 billion US dollars. For Central Asian countries, China's financial support, as well as new technologies and solutions in agriculture, water resources management, industry, engineering, transportation and other fields are particularly important.

Xi'an Big Wild Goose Pagoda

People-to-people and cultural exchanges and cooperation between Central Asian countries and China have developed steadily in an all-round way. In order to strengthen people-to-people and cultural cooperation, this summit will discuss the cancellation of travel restrictions for Chinese citizens, relaxation of conditions for entering Central Asian countries, and increasing the number of Chinese tourists to Central Asian countries.

The six parties will also strengthen security cooperation. In 2022, at the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the five Central Asian countries, the six countries reaffirmed their common determination and expressed their willingness to work together to combat all forms of terrorism, separatism and extremism, as well as drug smuggling and transnational organized crime. Response to threats in the field of information security. All parties believe that resolving the Afghan issue as soon as possible is one of the important factors for maintaining regional security and stability. On this issue, Uzbek President Mirziyoyev's proposal is promising. He proposed the establishment of an international logistics center to provide humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and other countries.

Workers conduct inspections at the Khorgos Metering Station of the Central Asia Natural Gas Pipeline

Zanatas 100MW wind power project in Kazakhstan under cooperation between China and Kazakhstan

Central Asia's economies are transitioning towards sustainable growth. According to the latest forecast of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the average GDP growth rate of Central Asian countries in 2023 and 2024 will be 4.9% and 5.4%, respectively, which is the strongest performance among the regions covered by the bank. The foreign trade volume of Central Asian countries continues to grow, reaching US$200 billion by 2022, double that of six years ago. The region is also becoming a large interconnected market, attracting more and more investors. In the past five years, trade among Central Asian countries has doubled. In 2022, Central Asia will attract US$40 billion in foreign direct investment, a year-on-year increase of 45%.

Uzbekistan is an important participant in the China-Central Asia cooperation mechanism and plays an important role in regional economic and geopolitical development.

Uzbekistan's role in the economy is reflected in its great potential as a transportation and trade center in Central Asia. Located in the center of Central Asia, the country has an important strategic location as a crossroads of transport corridors connecting Central Asia with China and beyond. In this context, the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project launched during the SCO Samarkand Summit in September 2023 is of great historical significance. It will shorten the freight journey from China to Europe and the Middle East by 900 kilometers and save 8 days in time. The feasibility study for the project is now nearing completion.

Uzbekistan also supports the interconnection between Central Asia and South Asia, and supports the realization of this goal through the construction of the Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway. This route can not only enhance the logistics capacity of the Belt and Road Initiative, but also contribute to the peaceful reconstruction of Afghanistan and the expansion of North-South economic and trade exchanges.

At the same time, it needs to be emphasized that at the 30th anniversary video summit between China and the five Central Asian countries on January 25, 2022, the President of Uzbekistan proposed to develop the SCO New Economic Dialogue to ensure unimpeded trade and provide a foundation for industrial cooperation and cooperation. Industrial localization provides space. In the face of the challenges brought about by the current turbulent international situation, optimizing the development trajectory and deepening cooperation in key areas, key regions and key projects will be an important task for the successful joint construction of the Belt and Road.

A key aspect of the further economic development of the Central Asian countries is the development of the Digital Silk Road, that is, to widely apply China's achievements in the field of new-generation technology to cooperation and promote the development of the digital economy. In this regard, experts pointed out that as a developing region, Central Asia has a rapid population growth and a large number of young people. It is the most active consumer group of digital services, so it has important advantages.

According to Statista, a German data statistics company, by 2028, the number of Internet users in Central Asia will increase by 20%, and the Internet penetration rate will increase from 70% to 75%, which will strongly promote the development of the information and communication technology industry in Central Asia. In this regard, it is necessary for China and Central Asian countries to strengthen interaction and jointly build a platform to promote the development of the "Digital Silk Road". At the same time, Uzbekistan proposed to hold a conference on the theme of artificial intelligence: new directions for cooperation between Central Asia and China.

The China-Central Asia Summit will open a new chapter in deepening cooperation between China and Central Asian countries in various fields, and contribute to the implementation of China's global development initiatives and global security initiatives aimed at strengthening international cooperation, promoting sustainable development, fairness and justice. Editor/He Yuting