China, Kazakhstan ink 13 co-op deals

Beijing(China)—China and Kazakhstan issued their bilateral cooperation strategy for the 21st century and a blueprint for economic cooperation in Beijing on Wednesday afternoon.
The two sides also signed 11 cooperation agreements covering trade, energy, science and technology, culture and education. The documents were signed after Chinese president Hu Jintao held talks with his visiting Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev. The two leaders agreed that China-Kazakhstan cooperation has developed to a “very high level”. Bilateral relations are a priority in the respective foreign policies of the two nations, they said.
China appreciates Kazakhstan’s support on the Taiwan issue and in the fight against terrorism and will back Kazakhstan’s efforts to promote economic development, social stability and national unity, Hu noted. In a 13-page document “China-Kazakhstan Cooperation Strategy for the 21st Century”, the two sides highlighted bilateral cooperation in politics, the economy, international cooperation, security, culture and international affairs. The 11 agreements include an outline agreement on oil pipeline construction and a framework agreement for Chinese funding worth 292.8 million U.S. dollars.
Acknowledging that bilateral cooperation has progressed rapidly since the two countries forged diplomatic relations 15 years ago, the two presidents expressed their willingness to further enhance the strategic partnership. Kazakhstan is willing to work closely with China in the fields of trade, energy, infrastructure construction, high technology and culture,Nazarbayev said, vowing to crack down harder on the three evil forces of terrorism, extremism and separatism. Nazarbayev also reiterated Kazakhstan’s continued adherence to the one-China policy.
Nazarbayev, who arrived in China on Tuesday as Hu’s guest, will give a speech at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), a Chinese government think-tank. It is Nazarbayev’s first visit to China since he won re-election last December. The document on “China-Kazakhstan Co-operation Strategy for the 21st Century” agrees to support cross-border construction of oil and gas pipelines and work closely on oil and gas processing, building new power facilities and providing electricity to third countries. It encourages mutual investment and pledges to create favourable conditions for enterprises that invest in industries such as machinery manufacturing, foodstuffs and textiles. The two sides will try to expand trade volume to US$10 billion by 2010 and to US$15 billion by 2015.
The nations also pledged to strengthen collaboration to crack down on border crimes. “The two sides will continue to have co-operation between law enforcement departments to fight against drug smuggling, weaponry and explosives trafficking, money-laundering and transnational organized crime,” it says. The crackdown on terrorism, separatism and extremism is also highlighted in the document.
It said both sides will boost the volume of rail freight and explore new railway routes between the two countries. They will simplify formalities at Customs and address any problems in import-export inspections. The two countries also signed 12 documents on the economy, energy, finance, education, and culture, including one on the launch of a Confucius Institute in Kazakhstan.
The 15th anniversary of diplomatic relations will be celebrated this year and the “Kazakh Culture Festival” will be held in China next year, Hu said. China and Kazakhstan are members of the Shanghai Co-operation Organization, a regional body which also groups Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Nazarbayev is in Beijing for a five-day state visit, the first since he won a re-election last December. He is scheduled to meet top legislator Wu Bangguo and Premier Wen Jiabao; and the visit will also take him to Hong Kong and Macao.

—Daily Mail, People’s Daily news exchange item