XU Qinhua: The Road of China–Central Asia Cooperation Is Becoming Broader and Broader

The focus of cooperation between China and Central Asia mainly centers on four areas: transportation infrastructure construction, trade and investment, energy complementarity, and agricultural cooperation. Notably, in the fields of trade and energy, the two sides have achieved fruitful results. On one hand, trade volume between China and the five Central Asian countries has repeatedly reached new highs, while the variety of import and export goods continues to improve, leading to a diversified trade structure. On the other hand, in the energy sector, China and Central Asian countries have established a China–Central Asia Energy Development Partnership, consolidating their traditional strengths in oil and gas cooperation and further expanding into renewable energy areas such as hydropower, solar energy, and wind energy.

With the rapid development of digital technologies and the accelerating pace of global climate change, cooperation in digital economy and green energy is expected to become a new focus in China–Central Asia relations. Data shows that in 2022, cross-border e-commerce trade volume between China and Central Asian countries increased by 95% year-on-year, highlighting the vast potential for digital cooperation. In the future, both sides can continue to strengthen collaboration in areas such as e-commerce, digital payments, big data, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence, jointly advancing the development of the digital economy and enhancing economic competitiveness. China has strong advantages in renewable energy technologies and industries, while Central Asian countries possess great potential in renewable resource development. This opens the door for broader cooperation in solar, wind, and hydropower, promoting industrial complementarity between the two sides.

(The above is an excerpted translation of views expressed by XU Qinhua, Vice Dean of the National Academy of Development and Strategy at Renmin University of China, in an interview with Chinese Social Sciences Today.)

Original article link: https://www.cssn.cn/skgz/bwyc/202506/t20250619_5879955.shtml

Translator: ZHANG Yuqing
Editor: ZHANG Jingjing