Xi's Kyrgyzstan visit promotes permanent good-neighborliness, friendship: Chinese FM

BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping's state visit to Kyrgyzstan has strengthened the bonds of permanent good-neighborliness and friendship between the two countries, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said.

It has also opened up new prospects for shared prosperity, deepened commitment to a shared future and demonstrated China's principle of amity, sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness in its neighborhood diplomacy, he noted.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks while briefing reporters on the conclusion of Xi's attendance at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Bishkek and state visits to Kyrgyzstan and Egypt from Aug 30 to Sept 3.

The visit to the Central Asian nation came as China-Kyrgyzstan cooperation has ushered in a "golden period" of rapid development, as noted by Xi in a written speech delivered upon his arrival, with the two countries working to translate their longstanding friendship and strong political mutual trust into broader cooperation and greater benefits for their people.

During the Kyrgyz leg of the trip, the two sides signed more than 30 cooperation documents covering trade, transportation, science and technology, education, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, among other areas.

The most significant political outcome was the signing by the two heads of state of a treaty on permanent good-neighborliness, friendship and cooperation, which legally cemented their commitment to everlasting friendship, Wang said.

The treaty marks a new level of political mutual trust, mutual support and strategic coordination, while opening broader avenues for future relations, he noted.

The two heads of state also agreed to elevate practical cooperation, with high-quality Belt and Road cooperation as the main focus, consolidating trade and investment, connectivity and green minerals cooperation while expanding into emerging fields such as the digital economy, clean energy and artificial intelligence, Wang added.

Xi, during his talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, said the two sides should ensure the high-quality construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, calling it a major transportation artery that carries the development aspirations of the people across the region.

Japarov, for his part, said Kyrgyzstan stands ready to actively advance the construction of the railway project, so as to turn it into a "steel Silk Road" for the new era and a new bond of friendship between the two countries.