BEIJING, Feb 5 (APP): As China enters the ‘Year of the Snake’, the country is welcoming leaders from four Asian states, including Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Brunei and Thailand, reflecting China’s efforts to advance its diplomatic agenda, as well as China’s determination to cooperate with its neighbours for common development, striving to build a peaceful and prosperous Asia, an expert said.
On Sunday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced that at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov will pay a state visit from Tuesday to Friday. On Monday, the ministry announced a state visit by President Asif Ali Zardari from February 4 to February 8.
Separately, Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah will pay a state visit to China from Wednesday to Friday. The ministry also announced that at the invitation of Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Prime Minister of Thailand Paetongtarn Shinawatra will pay an official visit to China from Wednesday to Saturday.
As the Spring Festival holidays came to an end on Tuesday, the invitation of leaders from multiple countries to China highlights China’s efforts to advance its diplomatic agenda and flexibly respond to various situations. In addition, the invited leaders are all from neighbouring countries, which demonstrates China’s determination to unite and cooperate with its neighbours for common development, striving to build a peaceful and prosperous Asia. This is also beneficial for China to further consolidate its strategic initiative during this period of evolution in the international order, Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times.
The visits of leaders coincide with the 9th Asian Winter Games in Harbin, which was described by the Chinese Foreign Ministry as “another major comprehensive international winter sports event held by China after the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.”
Following the official meetings in Beijing, President Zardari will travel to Harbin to attend the opening ceremony of the 9th Asian Winter Games.
The invited foreign leaders each have their own focused topics, Qian noted. For example, multiple cases of telecom fraud have drawn the attention of both China and Thailand, with both sides expressing a positive attitude toward strengthening cooperation to resolve the issue, while the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway launched in 2024 could be a priority for discussions between Kyrgyzstan and China, the expert said.
Kyrgyzstan hopes to strengthen cooperation with China, especially in attracting more Chinese investment and increasing exports to China, Zhang Hong, a research fellow at the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.
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