China’s Belt and Road Initiative is one of the most ambitious infrastructure mega projects of the modern world. We are proud that 10 years ago BRI was first announced in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The Initiative has become an expression of good cooperative and beneficial relations between China and Kazakhstan. Since then, it became not only a recognizable brand of Chinese diplomacy, but also a real instrument fostering trade, cultural exchanges, capital flows and infrastructure development.
International cooperation within BRI is an example of Kazakhstan’s major economic projects being paired with Chinese global initiative. Today, relations between Kazakhstan and China are actively developing in the spirit of friendship, good neighbourliness, and eternal strategic partnership. The leaders of our countries launched a new “golden thirty years” of cooperation between Kazakhstan and China.
In 2014 Kazakhstan adopted new economic development strategy “Nurly Zhol” for upgrading Kazakhstani infrastructure. The Strategy is intended to turn Kazakhstan into a key Eurasian transport and logistics hub by modernizing transportation, logistics, industrial, energy, and social infrastructures.
Kazakhstan’s unique location in the heart of Eurasia on the crossroads of the ancient silk road, huge territory (the 9th biggest country in the world and the world’s largest landlocked country), growing population, enormous mineral resources, political stability, favourable investment climate, wiliness to integrate into global economy and desire to ensure sustainable development, adoption of national infrastructure modernization strategy were prerequisites for successful integration with BRI.
Therefore, aligning BRI goals with its own national economic and infrastructure development project, enabled Kazakhstan and China to sign a joint plan emphasising critical areas of cooperation: transportation infrastructure, trade, and manufacturing industries.
Kazakhstan is one of the best examples of mutually beneficial cooperation within BRI with accumulated $26 billion of Chinese investments in 50 joint projects. At the same time, “our own investments are strategically linked to BRI aiming to create multimodal, environmentally friendly and sustainable infrastructure”. In the past 15 years, Kazakhstan has invested $35 billion in the transport and logistics sector to build a broad network of transit trans-continental routes crossing Kazakhstan and connecting China, Central and South Asian countries with Europe and Middle East. This makes it possible to deliver goods between China and Europe through Kazakhstan in 15 days. As a growing transport and logistics hub, Kazakhstan accounts for about 80% of all land transit from China to Europe.
Among Kazakhstan’s major infrastructure and strategic large-scale projects paired with the global Chinese initiative are:
– 5.000 km of pipelines have been laid down in Kazakhstan to export oil and gas to China.
– Oil Refinery modernization, construction of Wind farm, Petrochemical Complex, hydro-electric power plant, JAC car assembly line;
– a $100 million were invested in the joint construction of Kazakhstan terminal in Lyan-Yungang port. It reduced delivery time to Asia-Pacific region by 3 times.
– construction of the biggest dry port in Horgos
– joint construction of Western Europe – Western China Expressway connecting China, Kazakhstan and Russia.
– Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran-Persian Gulf Railway
– within next 3 years it is planned to jointly lay a thousand kms of new railways
– during the Third BRI Forum in Beijing, Agreement on the joint development of the Middle Corridor or Trans-Caspian International Transport Route has been signed to strengthen trade and economic cooperation in Eurasia. By 2025 the capacity of TITR is expected to reach 10 million tonnes per year.
We believe that for the successful development of the Middle Corridor, it is necessary to develop cooperation and sustainable transport connectivity between China, Central Asia and Europe which will benefit the region’s economic outlook and enhance the transit capacity between Asia and Europe.
-This year, Kazakhstan Temir Zholy – a transport and logistics company – signed agreements with transport companies from Xi’an, Jiangsu, Beijing, Zhengzhou, and Chongqing to operate transit containers through Kazakhstan. First direct train from Chongqing to Türkiye along the Trans-Caspian route was successfully launched in February this year.
– opening of Kazakhstan transportation and logistics terminal in Xi’an, China’s pivotal transit hub and the largest dry port connecting China with Kazakhstan, Central Asia and Europe. Up to 40% of Chinese container trains going to EU are formed here. The terminal is expected to open access to new markets for Kazakh exporters and strengthening our position as a reliable transit hub in Eurasia.
– Innovation Centre jointly established by Kazakh national railway company and Huawei. Its Smart Railway project will provide IT solutions by developing invisible corridor along the Trans-Caspian route in collaboration with Singaporean PSA International logistics company.
– National logistics operators of Kazakhstan, EU and China agreed to enable cross-border trade in the Eurasian space showcasing third-country partnerships within BRI. Through accelerated digitalization and simplification of customs procedures, we will significantly improve services quality and cost efficiency.
Kazakhstan is determined to continue cooperation in the new decade of BRI based on high quality, people-centred and sustainable approach and fully supports the Initiative which is in line with the national development strategy. Therefore, in the spirit of BRI, lets enhance existing partnerships, establish new networks, connecting countries, businesses, and people to the benefit of all.
Cooperation along the BRI has a strong impact on the prosperity and progressive development of several billion people around the world. Due to challenging global geostrategic environment, countries can use BRI to mitigate external risks and uncertainties by promoting close regional trade and economic integration.
In a fast-changing global geopolitical environment, BRI projects can significantly improve connectivity, boost trade, investment, economic growth and improve the living conditions of the recipient countries on a sustainable basis.
Countries should move forward in the joint construction of the BRI to simplify investment and trade procedures, cultivate new growth points in areas such as artificial intelligence, big data, digital finance, e-commerce, and green energy. We must implement socially significant projects using high standards for the benefit of sustainable development, raise pragmatic cooperation to a qualitatively new level, promote the practical implementation of the global development initiative and make our common contribution to the building of a global community with a shared future.
