Kazakhstan at CAEXPO: 'Belt' meets 'Road' in Nanning

Officials from China and Kazakhstan held a regional cooperation forum on the eve of the 14th China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) in Nanning, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, with discussions centering around connecting Kazakhstan on the "Belt" to ASEAN on the "Road."

The Belt refers to the overland corridors connecting economies across the world as part of the ambitious development plan proposed by China in 2013, while the Road relates to the maritime routes.

Kazakhstan is taking part in the four-day expo, which will kick off on Tuesday, as a Special Partner, marking the first time a country along the Silk Road Economic Belt has been invited to join the activities of the annual trade fair.

Guangxi is the permanent host of CAEXPO and home to a handful of cross-border projects connecting China with ASEAN, such as the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park, China-Vietnam cross-border economic cooperation zone, and China-Thailand Comprehensive Industrial Development Zone.

Kazakhstan is key to China-Europe freight trains, and the central Asian country can gain access to ASEAN market via Nanning, which is along China-Singapore connectivity channel. When the "Belt" meets "Road," China, Kazakhstan and ASEAN countries will all benefit from advanced integration.

Four years ago, it was in Kazakhstan that Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed to jointly build the Silk Road Economic Belt. Today, Kazakhstan is entering a new chapter in its contribution to the Belt and Road Initiative.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Kazakhstan, and the two countries have achieved a solid political foundation for economic cooperation.

Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli addressed the forum, noting that cooperation between the two countries has yielded fruitful results under the promotion of both leaderships.

China is Kazakhstan's second largest trading partner, while Kazakhstan is China's largest trading partner in Central Asia. In the first seven months of this year, bilateral trade rose to 9.3 billion US dollars – an increase of 39.2 percent year on year.

China has invested nearly 43 billion US dollars in Kazakhstan, its largest investment destination along the Belt and Road. The Export-Import Bank of China has signed contracts worth of 1.7 billion US dollars with Kazakhstan on the construction of four highways as long as 1,500 kilometers.

In May, China COSCO Shipping Corporation and Jiangsu Lianyungang Port Co. bought 49 percent of an inland port in the Khorgos-East Gate special economic zone near China-Kazakhstan border.

During Monday's forum, local officials from the two countries exchanged cooperative ideas on capacity, logistics, agriculture, tourism, energy and industrial parks.

Kazakhstan's pavilion at the expo will promote its specialties in agriculture, culture, tourism, education, among other areas and provide services for trade negotiations.