Azerbaijan, Baku, June 10 / Trend E. Ostapenko /
China considers Kazakhstan as an important strategic partner. It sees broad prospects for further development of the entire spectrum of relations, Chinese President Hu Jintao said in an interview with Kazinform.
"China and Kazakhstan are good neighbors and important strategic partners," Hu Jintao said. "The Chinese side attaches great importance to developing the relations with Kazakhstan and tends to intensify the friendly multi-faceted cooperation in all fields, bringing the bilateral relations to a new level."
He added that the two peoples are interested in developing the long-term stable, comprehensive strategic partnership, as this meets long-term interests of the parties.
For almost 20 years of our diplomatic relations China and Kazakhstan consistently maintained a positive trend of healthy and stable development of bilateral cooperation.
China-Kazakhstan relations have acquired new dimension since the establishment of strategic partnership in July 2005.
As for the practical cooperation we have a wide range of positive effects: deepening of cooperation in trade, financial, energy, transport, scientific-technical, humanitarian fields. China and Kazakhstan have built and put into operation oil and gas pipelines, the Chinese leader said.
Our commodity circulation amounted to $20.4 billion last year showing up to 50-fold increase since the beginning of our diplomatic relations, Hu Jintao said.
China and Kazakhstan enjoy close interaction in many international structures - the UN, SCO, CICA - thus ensuring peace, stability and development of the region and the whole world, he said.
The states provide strong mutual support in all major issues related to the fundamental interests of each other, and carry out fruitful cooperation in the fight against "three evil forces", drug trafficking and transnational organized crime, he said.
The frequent high-level contacts contribute to strengthening the political cooperation, he said.
"The Chinese side is pleased to assess the status of developing bilateral relations," he said. "It is fully confident of the bright prospects for their further development."
At the invitation of President Nursultan Nazarbayev in the middle of June Hu Jintao will pay a state visit to Kazakhstan. I will participate in the upcoming jubilee summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Astana on June 15.
"Together with the Kazakh authorities I am ready to sum up the results of China-Kazakhstan relations over the past 20 years and draw up a program of the future development of our strategic partnership, outline new goals in all directions of practical cooperation," he said.
I am looking forward to an in-depth exchange of views with the leadership of Kazakhstan on the matter of SCO development, the situation in Central Asia and other issues of mutual interest regarding the most important international and regional issues, he added.
It is expected to sign a joint political document and a number of significant documents in the spheres of trade, economy, finance, environmental protection, transport and humanitarian cooperation, he said.
"I believe that through our joint efforts the visit will result in great success, giving additional impetus to the sustainable and comprehensive development of Sino-Kazakh relation," he said.