Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov and Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan Vladimir Norov on the sidelines of the third "China+Central Asia" (C+C5) Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Kazakhstan on Tuesday.

China agreed with Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to intensify cooperation in various areas to yield more substantial results to usher in a better future.

Wang said the strategic partnership between China and Turkmenistan has achieved new results and called for the two countries to fully implement an important consensus reached by the two heads of state, when meeting with Rashid Meredov.

Strategic energy cooperation is an important part of strategic cooperation between the two countries, Wang added, noting that China will continue expanding bilateral energy cooperation and viewing Turkmenistan as an important strategic partner in energy.

Meredov said the frequent high-level exchanges between the two countries showed a high level of bilateral relations, which would not be disrupted by external political elements.

The two sides agreed to accelerate alignment between China's Belt and Road initiative and Turkmenistan's development strategy to revive the Great Silk Road, further strengthen cooperation in cyber security and bio-security and improve global governance.

When holding talks with Uzbekistan's Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Norov, Wang said China is willing to take the opportunity of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties and the 10th anniversary of the strategic partnership between China and Uzbekistan this year to continue to expand bilateral cooperation and push for further development of bilateral relations

China will help Uzbekistan accelerate industrialization and enhance its independent development capability, Wang said, highlighting the need to implement the five-year plan for intergovernmental economic, trade and investment cooperation, and select a number of major cooperation projects of strategic significance.

Norov noted that Uzbekistan will firmly abide by the one-China principle, advance joint Belt and Road cooperation and promote mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation in various fields including economic and trade investment, energy production capacity and green agriculture.

Meanwhile, the two countries will bolster communication and coordination through the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Wang said China supports Uzbekistan in successfully holding the SCO summit in September in Samarkand.

The third "China+Central Asia" (C+C5) Foreign Ministers' Meeting was held in Nur-Sultan, the capital of Kazakhstan, from June 6 to 9, aiming to deepen good neighborliness and mutually beneficial cooperation in various areas between China and the Central Asian countries for common development and prosperity.

Global Times