2022 is a milestone year for Central Asian countries and China. Thirty years ago, China was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with the five Central Asian republics after independence, and also opened a new era in the history of friendly relations between China and the five Central Asian countries.
Model of cooperation between China and Central Asia
In just 30 years, the trade volume between China and the five Central Asian countries has increased from hundreds of millions of US dollars to tens of billions of US dollars, almost a hundred times, and China's investment in Central Asia has also reached US$40 billion.
Uzbekistan (abbreviated as Uzbekistan)’s friendship history can be traced back to the great “ Silk Road ”. Due to the high mutual trust between the leaders of the two countries, on the basis of good-neighborliness, friendship, mutual understanding and openness, the two countries actively develop cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, investment, finance and technology, industry, and humanities. The Ukraine-China partnership has become a model of mutual assistance and good neighborliness and friendship. Over the past 30 years, the political mutual trust between Ukraine and China has been greatly enhanced. Both sides adhere to the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, support each other, safeguard each other's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, firmly support each other's chosen development path, and firmly oppose any attempt to interfere in internal affairs.
For many years, the two heads of state have established good working relations and deep personal friendship, regularly exchanged views on bilateral relations, multilateral cooperation, and regional and international issues of common concern, and drawn a new blueprint for the continuous and rapid development of Ukraine-China relations.
"Belt and Road" has become a new engine for development of both countries
According to the latest statistics, there are more than 2,000 Chinese-funded enterprises registered in Ukraine. The joint construction of the "Belt and Road" has become a new engine for the two countries to develop a comprehensive strategic partnership between . The main cooperation projects of the two countries, such as the "Angelian-Pap" railway Kamchik tunnel and the Navoi PVC production complex project, have brought tangible benefits to the people of Ukraine. This year, the China-Jiji-Ukraine Railway project has also been launched.
htmlFor 130 years, the two countries have actively deepened exchanges in the field of humanities. Two Confucius Institutes in Tashkent and Samarkand are exchange centers for the two countries in the field of education. There are more than a dozen primary and secondary schools in Ukraine that offer Chinese courses, and a Chinese learning boom is emerging here. Chinese people are also paying more and more attention to the history and culture of Uzbekistan; many Chinese universities have taught Uzbek courses and established Uzbekistan Research Center. The two countries are maintaining close ties through regions, think tanks, media, cultural activities and other channels.
In the face of the COVID-19 epidemic, Ukraine and China provide help to each other and fight the epidemic together. China's vaccine has successfully passed clinical trials and began to be produced in Ukraine, becoming a major boost to Ukraine's fight against the epidemic. China's anti-coronavirus drug has been approved for clinical use in Ukraine, becoming the third anti-coronavirus drug in the world that has been licensed by other countries' governments.
Broader cooperation space
At present, considering the complementarity of the economies of the two countries, the path of cooperation between the two countries can continue to expand. Cooperation can be strengthened in digital economy , e-commerce, transportation and communications and logistics, and investment. Ukraine recommends formulating the China-Central Asia New Economic Dialogue Strategy and taking targeted measures to ensure smooth trade exchanges. With the participation of Chinese technology, it will open up industrial cooperation and localization space for the production of imported products from various regions.
Transportation infrastructure is the driving force for trade and economic cooperation between Central Asian countries and China. The new crown pneumonia epidemic has hindered the logistics of the China-Central Asia route, causing a shortage of necessary equipment and raw materials in Central Asian countries, and has had a negative impact on the construction progress and implementation quality of important investment projects. Therefore, we need to find solutions that can ensure uninterrupted freight and cross-regional logistics network development .
Urban suggested establishing a coordinating committee at the deputy head level of Central Asia and China's governments to establish a mutually beneficial partnership in the development of digital economy and trade, e-government, blockchain technology and artificial intelligence .In order to achieve practical results, it is recommended to create a joint "Smart Silk Road" platform based on information technology parks in various countries.
Learn from China's experience, Ukraine actively fights poverty, so that it can still lift more than 500,000 families out of poverty under the COVID-19 epidemic. Ukraine's goal is to reduce the number of poor people by half by 2026. To achieve this goal, the Ukrainian government will continue to cooperate with China to implement agricultural modernization, plant crops on saline-alkali lands, and establish production chains between urban and rural areas.
Uzbekistan and Shanghai Cooperation Organization
At a time of global geopolitical and economic turmoil, Ukraine invited Shanghai Cooperation Organization (hereinafter referred to as: SCO ) member states to rethink the importance of multilateral cooperation. Therefore, at the SCO Samarkand Summit, Ukrainian President Shafkat Mirziyoev put forward some breakthrough initiatives and suggestions. According to experts, the most prominent part of the economic initiatives proposed by Ukraine is the formulation of a joint action plan to promote mutual investment within the framework of the activities of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO member states, aiming to alleviate the global financial and economic shocks.
The results of this summit will further promote mutual trade and enhance the economic development potential of SCO members. What the SCO in the new era should look like? It can be seen from the initiatives proposed by Ukraine that Ukraine's understanding of this is trade, industry and technology cooperation and closer transportation and economic connections, innovation, digital transformation and a green economy.
This summit aims to strengthen multi-faceted cooperation between the SCO and raise cooperation to a new level.
Compilation: Yang Haibo
