At the invitation of the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev visits China on May 18-19 this year to attend the First Summit of the Heads of State of Central Asia and China.

The upcoming summit in the historic city of Xi'an is of epochal significance for developing relations between Central Asia and China. This major event stands out because, this time, for the first time, China is the host. It is also the first summit where the heads of the six states have met in person since establishing diplomatic relations 31 years ago. The forum will outline a new plan for developing mutually beneficial relations for the future and open a new era of cooperation.

The event is expected to deepen strategic mutual trust between China and the countries of the region, which are friendly neighbors and strategic partners.

During the summit, the leaders of the states will consider the development of relations between Central Asia and China, exchange views on the development of the Central Asia – China mechanism, and cooperation in various fields of mutual interest. It is also planned to sign a solid package of documents.

Uzbekistan and China have successfully built bilateral, mutually beneficial cooperation for many years, which has become dynamic, multifaceted, and long-term.

Thanks to the leaders’ efforts of the two states, relations between Uzbekistan and China have reached a high level of interaction in a new era, a comprehensive strategic partnership is expanding, and economic ties are being strengthened.

Since 2011, the most favored nation treatment has been established in mutual trade. In 2022, the trade turnover between Uzbekistan and China for the first time reached $9 billion, an increase of 20% compared to 2021. In the first quarter of this year, China has become the leading trading partner of Uzbekistan, with a total amount of $2.3 billion.

Particular attention is paid to developing investment cooperation between the two countries. The total amount of Chinese investments in 2017-2022 amounted to about $11 billion, of which $2.2 billion was in 2022 alone.

There are 2,141 enterprises operating in Uzbekistan with the participation of Chinese investments, including 275 established in 2022, of which the largest are Huawei, ZTE, Wenzhou Jinsheng Trading, JV Peng Sheng, Sinotruk, Heng Bang Textile Central Asia.

Over the years of cooperation, several large and important investment projects have been implemented in agriculture and water management, the electric power industry, the textile industry, mechanical engineering, and transport.

Bilateral relations are developing with Chinese government financial institutions, such as the Export-Import Bank and China Development Bank. Since 2009, the total amount of loans from these financial institutions for 862 projects amounted to $3.4 billion.

Notably, in January 2023, agreements were reached between UzAuto and BYD on creating a joint venture in Uzbekistan to produce and sell cars using new energy sources from BYD Uzbekistan Factory. This is the first joint venture of the Chinese electric vehicle giant outside of China.

The far-sighted policy of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev contributed to strengthening ties with the closest neighbors in the region, which directly created a belt of friendship and prosperity, security, and stability around Uzbekistan. In a reasonably short period, Uzbekistan focused its foreign policy on mutually beneficial relations with the region's countries, improving the state's image in the international arena.

This transformation of Central Asia arouses China’s deep interest in the region. As President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping noted, “Uzbekistan is a major power in Central Asia”.

According to the EBRD forecast, in 2023 and 2024, the GDP of the Central Asian countries will grow by an average of 4.9% and 5.4%, respectively. This is the highest figure in the regions where the bank is present.

Along with the increase in the size of the economies, the foreign trade of the Central Asian countries is also growing. This figure has doubled over the past six years, amounting to $200 billion in 2022.

At the same time, the connectivity market of the region becomes the most attractive for large investors. The inflow of foreign direct investment into the region increased by 45%, reaching $40 billion in 2022.

It should be noted that the development of relations between Uzbekistan and China in the “Central Asia + China” format, where Uzbekistan stands for the joint implementation of long-term and mutually beneficial projects with China in the region, is entirely in the interests of all countries.

These projects will undoubtedly contribute to sustainable socio-economic development, integration of the region’s countries into the global economic system, transport, and logistics corridors.

By 2022, the volume of trade between China and Central Asian countries has grown more than 100 times since the early 90s of the last century. At the end of 2022, China increased trade with Central Asian countries to $70.2 billion.

China is one of the primary sources of direct investment in the economies of the Central Asian countries. By the end of 2022, their volume in the Central Asian countries amounted to almost $15 billion.

For the region’s countries, the Chinese capital, coupled with new technologies, the best solutions in agriculture and water management, industry, engineering, transport, and other sectors of the economy, is of particular importance.

At the upcoming summit, the leaders of the six countries will take stock of cooperation and put forward new initiatives to firmly and effectively promote all-round cooperation between China and Central Asia and create a new model of complementary and mutually beneficial cooperation.

The China – Central Asia Summit will give new impetus to the high-quality construction of the Belt and Road.

One of the key aspects of this cooperation is the development of the Green Silk Road, that is, using green development technologies, innovative solutions, and advanced technologies to achieve environmental efficiency and sustainability.

According to most authoritative experts, China is entering a period of rapid development of green technologies.

Green development policy is one of the priorities of the Chinese government, the main goal of which is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. It is based on the concept of Chinese President Xi Jinping on China’s “Ecological Civilization”, aimed at balanced and sustainable development, the harmonious coexistence of man and nature.

A prime example of afforestation to prevent desertification is the Saihanba National Forest Park (Hebei Province, northern China), which has been transformed from a desert into an oasis. Thanks to this, the ecological situation in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region has improved.

“Green” transformation in China provides an active transition to electric transport. According to statistics, if 13 thousand electric vehicles were sold in 2012, then in 2022, their number in China amounted to about 5.9 million (59% of the total in the world).

Today, the development of green technologies is considered in Uzbekistan as an important area for sustainable and environmental growth of the country’s green economy. Similar approaches are applied in the countries of the region.

Taking into account China’s vast experience in this area, it would be beneficial for Central Asian countries to establish practical cooperation in green development through the use of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind energy, energy-efficient technologies, waste management systems, and other measures aimed at protecting the environment.

The issue of adopting the Joint Program of Cooperation between Central Asia and China within the framework of the Chinese initiative “Green Silk Road” is highlighted as promising.

This will help create a favorable environment for investment, technology exchange, and knowledge transfer, contributing to the growth of a green economy and reducing the negative impacts of climate change.

Cooperation between Central Asia and China in green development will be a powerful catalyst for exchanging advanced achievements and forging cooperation in creating the future of sustainable green development in the region.

Shavkat Alimbekov,

Leading Researcher at the International Institute for Central Asia