Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in his video message congratulated the participants on the opening of the 4th China International Import EXPO / CIIE / and called the exhibition a "golden gate" to the Chinese market. This was announced on Friday by the press service of the head of state, Xinhua news agency reported.

“The China International Imported Goods Show, which opened today, has become, in fact, a center that brings together exporters from all over the world. Manufacturers from more than 120 countries of the world take part in this significant event. This clearly demonstrates that the exhibition in Shanghai serves as a "golden gate" to the huge Chinese market. The exhibition is attended by 30 largest manufacturers of Kazakhstan. It is expected that they will conclude contracts for the supply of food and agricultural products in the amount of more than US$100 million,” Tokayev said.

He recalled that this year the friendly peoples of the two countries approached important milestones in their history. It is 30 years since the independence of Kazakhstan and 100 years since the founding of the Chinese Communist Party.

“In two months we are celebrating another significant event - the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and China. Today I can say with confidence that our comprehensive and eternal strategic partnership has entered a new stage. Dynamically developing China will always be our main and reliable partner in Asia,” the president said.

The head of state stressed that mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation opens the way to joint development and prosperity on the vast Eurasian continent, and trade and economic relations, which serve as a solid foundation for interaction between the two countries, will also develop in the future.

“Despite the difficulties, only in the difficult 2020, bilateral trade grew by 5 percent. and exceeded 15 billion US dollars. A Chinese proverb says, "When the wind of change blows, some build walls, others build windmills." We hope that the temporary restrictions introduced in connection with the pandemic on the Kazakh-Chinese border will soon be lifted and our mutual trade flows will be fully restored,” Tokayev noted.

The President of Kazakhstan in his greeting noted that trade has always been the main driving force behind prosperity and international cooperation. This principle is especially important for a region that has been linked by the Great Silk Road for centuries.

“This ancient trade route has been revived thanks to Chairman Xi Jinping’s massive Belt and Road initiative. To date, more than 500 thousand containers are transported from China to Europe through the territory of Kazakhstan every year. After the launch of the seaport of Kuryk, the delivery time for goods from Khorgos to Istanbul along the Lianyungang-Kars transport corridor was reduced five times - from 60 to 13 days. In addition to Khorgos, we are creating a new cross-border hub with neighboring countries,” said the President of Kazakhstan.

According to Kazakh President, the epidemic of a new type of coronavirus / COVID-19 /, which swept the whole world, seriously undermined global trade ties. Therefore, Kazakhstan will continue to closely cooperate with all stakeholders to strengthen and diversify regular transit routes and introduce innovative logistics approaches.

At the end of his speech, the President wished success to the participants of the Shanghai Exhibition and expressed hope for expanding the horizons of mutually beneficial trade relations.