Chinese premier backs high-quality China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said on Saturday that China stands ready to ensure the high-quality implementation of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project.

During his meeting with Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in Tashkent, Li also said that China supports more capable Chinese enterprises in investing and doing business in Uzbekistan and hopes the Uzbek side will continue to provide a favorable business environment for these enterprises.

Li noted that in recent years, the building of a China-Uzbekistan community with a shared future has continued to achieve new results.

In the face of a complex and turbulent international landscape, China and Uzbekistan should strengthen solidarity and cooperation and remain firmly committed to moving forward together, he said.

China stands ready to strengthen strategic communication with Uzbekistan, continue to firmly support each other's core interests and expand mutually beneficial cooperation to deliver greater benefits to the peoples of both countries, Li said.

China is ready to work with Uzbekistan to expand bilateral trade and optimize its structure, strengthen cooperation in areas such as energy, minerals, finance and connectivity, and deepen cooperation in scientific and technological innovation in fields such as artificial intelligence, the green economy and aerospace, so as to jointly seize future development opportunities, Li said.

Both sides should also promote people-to-people connectivity and facilitate the establishment of cultural centers in each other's countries as soon as possible, Li said.

China is ready to strengthen coordination of positions with Uzbekistan on major issues, enhance collaboration within multilateral frameworks such as the China-Central Asia mechanism and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, safeguard the common interests of both countries and contribute to peace and development at both the regional and global levels, Li said.

For his part, Mirziyoyev congratulated the Communist Party of China on the 105th anniversary of its founding, saying that China is forging ahead toward national rejuvenation.

He added that Uzbekistan-China relations are currently enjoying a "golden age." Uzbekistan firmly adheres to the one-China principle and firmly supports China in safeguarding its core interests, he said, noting that Uzbekistan will continue to work with China to combat the "three evil forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism.

Uzbekistan welcomes more Chinese enterprises to invest and do business in the country and stands ready to work with China to accelerate the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway and advance exchanges and cooperation across various fields, he said.