Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday began his first foreign trip since the outbreak of the pandemic with a visit to Kazakhstan ahead of a summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and other leaders of a Central Asian security group.
Dressed in a blue suit and a mask, Xi waved on the airport tarmac through President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and an honor guard, all wearing masks.
Xi stresses the importance Beijing attaches to announcing its role as a regional leader amid tensions with Washington, Japan and India.
Tokayev’s government said the two leaders would talk about energy and trade. Kazakhstan, a sparsely populated country of 19. 4 million people and vast grasslands, is a major producer of oil and gas. China is a major customer.
Tokayev thanked Xi for his visit, which he called “historic significance” and comes at an “unprecedented time, after the end of the Cold War, of an escalation of foreign tensions. “initiatives”.
The Chinese leader resolutely vowed to Kazakhstan “to protect its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, firmly its ongoing reforms to ensure stability and development, and categorically oppose the interference of any force in the internal affairs” of the country “in any way. “. The external scenario is changing.
China’s state CCTV reported that after visiting Kazakhstan, Xi flew to neighboring Uzbekistan’s Samarkand for a summit of the eight-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organization led by China and Russia.
Beijing and Moscow see the SCO as a counterweight to U. S. alliances in East Asia.
Other SCO governments come with India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and Tajikistan. Observers come with Iran and Afghanistan.
The Chinese leader is selling a “Global Security Initiative” announced in April following the formation of the Quad across Washington, Japan, Australia and India in reaction to Beijing’s more assertive foreign policy. Xi gave few details, but U. S. officials say he echoes Russian arguments. in favor of Moscow’s attack on Ukraine.
Xi and Putin plan to hold a one-on-one meeting and discuss Ukraine, according to Russian President Yuri Ushakov’s foreign policy adviser.
Kazakhstan is part of China’s multibillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative to expand the industry through the construction of ports, railways and other infrastructure in an arc of dozens of countries ranging from the South Pacific to Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
China’s initiative and economic advances in Central Asia have fueled unease in Russia, which sees the region as its sphere of influence. Kazakhstan and its neighbors seek to attract Chinese investment without antagonizing Moscow.
“This is incredibly important,” Vice Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko said this week ahead of Xi’s arrival. “In fact, we hope this will boost political, economic and industrial relations with China. “
Pope Francis was in Kazakhstan at the same time as Xi, but there was no indication they could meet. On board his flight, the pope was asked about an assembly imaginable and replied: “I have no news about it. But I” m at all times in a position to pass to China.
Xi’s vacation, at a time when his government is urging the Chinese public to avoid abroad as part of its “zero-COVID” strategy, underscores the importance of the ruling Communist Party asserting China’s strategic ambitions.
Relations with Washington, Europe, Japan and India are strained by disputes over technology, security, human rights and territory.
The summit grabs Xi as the party prepares for a congress in October in which he is expected to break with political culture and seek to secure a third five-year term at the helm.
This suggests that Xi, China’s toughest leader since at least the 1980s, is convinced that his third term is secure and that he does not want to stay home to make last-minute political deals. in the ruling party.
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