AChina-EuropefreighttrainarrivesatXi"aninternationalportinXi"an,northwestChina"sShaanxiProvince,Aug.31,2022.Thefreighttrainloadedwithrawmaterialsofliquorice,aChinesemedicinalherb,departedfromTurkmenistan.(Xinhua/LiYibo)

BEIJING,May15(Xinhua)--ThelandmarkChina-CentralAsiaSummitthisweekissettoprovidegreatimpetusforrelationsandcooperationbetweenChinaandthefiveCentralAsiancountries.

Thesummit,thefirstheldofflinebytheheadsofstateofChinaandthefiveCentralAsiancountries,willtakeplaceinXi"an,northwestChina"sShaanxiProvinceonThursdayandFriday.TheeventwillbechairedbyChinesePresidentXiJinpingandattendedbythepresidentsofKazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan,Tajikistan,TurkmenistanandUzbekistan.

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Therealreadyaresolidfoundationsforexpandingtheall-roundandwin-wincooperationbetweenChinaandtheseCentralAsiancountries,indicatingbrightprospectsforjointlybuildingacloserChina-CentralAsiacommunitywithasharedfuture.

ChinaandCentralAsiancountriesarecomprehensivestrategicpartners,goodneighbors,goodfriends,goodpartnersandgoodbrothers.HeadofstatediplomacyhasupgradedandboostedChina-CentralAsiacooperationanddeepenedstrategicmutualtrust.Inthepastdecade,XihasvisitedCentralAsiaseventimes.Followingtheprinciplesofmutualrespect,goodneighborliness,friendship,mutualassistance,andwin-wincooperation,ChinaandthefiveCentralAsiancountrieshavesetagoodexampleoffosteringanewtypeofinternationalrelations.

ThefiveCentralAsiancountrieshaveallsignedcooperationagreementsonjointlydevelopingtheBeltandRoadInitiativeandsupportedinitiativessuchastheGlobalDevelopmentInitiativeandtheGlobalSecurityInitiative.

Figuresshowfruitfuleconomicandtradecooperation.Therehasbeenover100-foldgrowthintwo-waytradesinceChinaestablisheddiplomaticrelationswiththefiveCentralAsiancountries31yearsago.TradebetweenChinaandthefivecountriesreachedarecord70.2billionU.S.dollarslastyear.Nearly80percentofChina-EuropefreighttrainspassthroughCentralAsia.Severalmajorprojectshavebeencompleted,includingtheChina-CentralAsianaturalgaspipeline,theChina-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistanhighway,andthePengshengIndustrialParkinUzbekistan,benefitingpeopleinthesecountries.

"China"senormousmarket,completeindustrialsystemandadvancedtechnologiesareveryattractivetoCentralAsiancountries,andtheprincipleofequalityandmutualbenefithasenabledbilateralcooperationtoachievesustainedandstablegrowth,"saidDingXiaoxing,directoroftheInstituteofEurasianStudiesatChinaInstitutesofContemporaryInternationalRelations.

China"smodernizationdrivewillbringmoreopportunitiesforCentralAsiancountries.Asbothsidesarekeentoexpandcooperationinagriculture,newenergy,e-commerce,greenanddigitaleconomy,hightechnologyandotherfields,newhighlightsandgrowthpointsofcooperationwillbecreatedforcommondevelopment.

Morethan2,100yearsago,ChineseenvoyZhangQianwastwicesenttoCentralAsiaonmissionsofpeaceandfriendship,startingtheSilkRoadlinkingtheEastandWest,AsiaandEurope.Today,people-to-peopleexchangesaremorevibrant.Thereareatotalof13ConfuciusInstitutesinthefivecountries.ChinahasalsobecomeoneofthemajordestinationsandtopchoicesforstudentsfromCentralAsia.

TheupcomingsummitwillopenanewchapterforChina-CentralAsiarelations.ItprovidesanimportantopportunityforChinaandCentralAsiancountriestomakejointeffortsinbuildingaclosercommunitywithasharedfuturewhileupholdingtheSilkRoadspiritfeaturingpeaceandcooperation,opennessandinclusiveness,mutuallearningandmutualbenefit.