China's Xi unveils grand development plan for Central Asia
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00:00 At the same time as the G7, an alternative summit taking place in northwest China.
00:05 Beijing wants to enhance its strategy with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
00:11 and Uzbekistan from building infrastructure to boosting trade, taking on a new leadership
00:16 role in a region that has traditionally been a Russian sphere of influence.
00:21 For more, let's speak to our correspondent, Yenna Li, standing by in Beijing.
00:25 Hello to you, Yenna.
00:27 Is China playing in Russia's backyard, so to speak?
00:32 Well, these Central Asian countries are post-Soviet states, so Moscow is hardly going to be thrilled
00:38 about the prospect of this open rapprochement between Central Asia and China.
00:43 Russia is busy with the war it decided to wage on Ukraine, and it's left a void in the
00:48 east that China is and has been filling.
00:50 But that said, Moscow and Beijing still have a very good relationship, and this growing
00:55 friendship between China and Central Asian states is nothing particularly new.
01:00 In fact, China has been investing in this region for years now with its Belt and Road
01:04 Initiative, also known as the New Silk Road.
01:07 Back in 2013, President Xi Jinping actually launched this trillion-dollar infrastructure
01:12 project in Kazakhstan.
01:14 So President Xi's pet project, this Belt and Road Initiative, is a central part of the
01:18 Xi'an summit that took place on Thursday and Friday in China.
01:22 In his keynote speech on Friday, President Xi tried to draw parallels from the historic
01:27 Silk Road to the modern-day economic potential in the region.
01:31 He called for an increase in cross-border infrastructure projects and the completion
01:35 of a gas pipeline.
01:36 He also mentioned security and stability in Central Asia.
01:40 Not only would unrest be bad for business, but Beijing also fears that unrest could spill
01:45 over into its northwestern province of Xinjiang.
01:48 So, economy, security, high on the agenda.
01:51 How important is this Central Asian region to China?
01:55 It's clearly a priority for Beijing.
02:00 Four out of the five countries that were present in Xi'an are actually members of the Shanghai
02:03 Corporation Organization, which is a political, economic security bloc led by China and Russia
02:10 that some call an anti-NATO bloc.
02:12 Tellingly, President Xi Jinping's first overseas trip after the pandemic was to Kazakhstan
02:18 and Uzbekistan.
02:19 It explains why Beijing is calling this Xi'an event both a landmark summit and its first
02:25 major diplomatic activity this year.
02:28 Judging by how busy Chinese diplomats have been since China's reopening, calling this
02:32 one the most important one so far this year is really rather quite remarkable.
02:36 The organizers of the event rolled out meters and meters, potentially kilometers of red
02:41 carpet for the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
02:47 They had this grandiose Tang Dynasty themed opening ceremony and Chinese state media has
02:52 been providing around the clock coverage of this as well.
02:56 One of the big announcements that came out this Friday was that this summit is to be
02:59 the first of many.
03:01 Leaders have decided that they want this to take place every two years.
03:04 So the next one is scheduled for 2025 in Kazakhstan.
03:06 All right, Yena, thank you very much.
03:08 Yena Li reporting from Beijing.
03:10 [BLANK_AUDIO]