Xi’s forthcoming visit to Kazakhstan raises warm expectations

From June 7 to 10, Chinese President Xi Jinping will pay a state visit to Kazakhstan and attend the 17th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the opening ceremony of the World Expo in Astana.

This is Xi’s third visit to the central Asian country in four years and his first visit abroad since the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation was held in mid-May.

People from all walks of life in the SCO’s member states and observer countries shared their expectations for Xi’s visit.

Klara Khafizova, member of the Kazakhstan National Academy of Natural Sciences and famous sinologist, said Xi brings forward pragmatic proposals on bilateral, regional and global cooperation every time he visits Kazakhstan.

She hopes Xi’s upcoming visit can add new vitality to bilateral development and cooperation.

Khafizova believes that Xi’s visit will inject a new impetus into construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Xi proposed to build the Silk Road Economic Belt during his visit to Astana in September 2013. The Astana Expo 2017, which is themed on energy, will kick off on June 10. It is the first time that an international exhibition of its kind will be held in Central Asia.

Khafizova said Xi’s presence at the expo shows his firm support for the event and the economic development of Kazakhstan.

India and Pakistan will be accepted as members of the SCO at the upcoming 17th SCO Council of Heads of State meeting. Khafizova said this is the first expansion of the SCO and it shows the organization’s rising influence and attraction in the world.

Konstantin Syroezhkin, a chief research fellow of the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of Kazakhstan, said Kazakhstan and China are friendly neighbors and President Xi’s upcoming visit will further deepen mutually beneficial cooperation.

Syroezhkin said he highly expects Xi’s speech at the SCO summit. Xi’s speeches at the past SCO summits are very concrete and impressive, he said. Pota Tasia, a Chinese language teacher at the Eurasian University in Kazakhstan, said she hopes Xi can come to visit young people studying Chinese at her university. She continued, “Kazakhstan and China are good neighbors and good partners. I believe President Xi’s visit will deepen our friendship and heat up local people’s interest in learning the Chinese language.”

Leonid Gusev, a senior research fellow at Moscow State Institute of International Relations, said the SCO’s robust development cannot be separated from China’s contribution. Xi’s attending the 17th SCO meeting to embrace new members shows the organization’s adhering to equality and inclusiveness and is conducive to strengthening the members’ confidence in win-win cooperation.

The SCO members look forward to Xi’s new thoughts, new proposals and new  impetus, he noted.

Muhammad Hanif, a researcher of China studies with the Islamabad Policy Research Institute, said Xi’s visit is conducive to synergizing consensus of different parties, deepening China’s cooperation with other countries and boosting joint building of the Belt and Road Initiative.

He said, Pakistan’s joining the SCO will benefit itself and help promote regional peace and stability. An Indian expert said China is an important member of the SCO and hopes that the organization can further boost regional security, trade and economic cooperation and cultural exchanges.