China, Kazakhstan to jointly promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation

BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held the First China-Kazakhstan Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue with Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Murat Nurtleu in Beijing on Friday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, said that under the strategic guidance of the two countries’ leaders, the bilateral relationship between China and Kazakhstan will maintain a strong momentum of development, and become a good example of mutual trust, support and assistance among neighboring countries.

China is ready to work with Kazakhstan to increase the scale of trade within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, said Wang, calling on the two sides to jointly build a highquality, sustainable and resilient new corridor of connectivity, increase people-to-people exchanges, and promote cooperation in new fields between the two countries.

Nurtleu said that Kazakhstan gives priority to China in its diplomatic agenda. Kazakhstan firmly supports China in safeguarding its core interests on Taiwan and Xinjiang-related issues, and is willing to further strengthen political mutual trust with China.

Kazakhstan is willing to expand mutually beneficial cooperation and enhance exchanges between the two peoples, and coordinate closely with China on international and regional affairs, Nurtleu added.

The two sides jointly announced the establishment of a strategic dialogue mechanism between the two countries’ foreign ministers.