China-Uzbekistan ties continue to thrive, co-op fruitful: Chinese ambassador

TASHKENT - Relations between China and Uzbekistan have kept developing in a sustainable and deep-going way while fruitful results have been achieved in bilateral cooperation in all fields over recent years, Chinese Ambassador to Uzbekistan Sun Lijie has said.

The Chinese and Uzbek peoples, as good friends, good partners and good brothers on the Silk Road, have jointly created a glorious history of the Silk Road, Sun said in a recent interview with Xinhua prior to Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Uzbekistan on June 21-24.

Today, the two countries continue to jointly push forward economic exchange and mutual reference in civilizations between the East and the West and promote common development of mankind, with pragmatic cooperation as a basis, with cultural cooperation as a bond, and with joint construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt as an opportunity, he said.

During Xi's upcoming visit to Uzbekistan, the leaders of the two countries will have in-depth discussions on further development of China-Uzbekistan relations and cooperation, Sun said.

He believed that Xi's visit will surely give a new impetus to the development of China-Uzbekistan ties and open a new chapter for friendly cooperation between the two countries.

The Chinese ambassador said that the pragmatic cooperation between the two countries has now embarked on a "fast track," driven by joint construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and bilateral production capacity cooperation.

Bilateral trade between the two countries has kept increasing and has been diversified, and the two countries are highly complementary to each other in terms of resources and essential factors of production, Sun said.

China is powerful in funding resources and has a well-developed manufacturing industry and strong production capacity, while Uzbekistan has rich natural resources, abundant labor and a strong desire for industrial upgrade, Sun said.

Currently, there are over 600 Chinese enterprises operating in various fields including energy, telecommunications, infrastructure construction and textile in Uzbekistan, he added.

During his visit to Uzbekistan, Xi will also attend a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.

On the prospect of the SCO, Sun said that the organization has scored abundant achievements since it was founded 15 years ago, and it has successfully explored a new model of international cooperation and has become one of the most dynamic and influential international mechanisms.

The SCO now has become a "big family" of six member countries, with six observer countries and six dialogue partners, and it has established cooperation with the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, he said.

The SCO has become a positive force that enhances security, stability and sustainable development in international relations, he noted.