China became new driver stimulating international cooperation- Nazarbayev
BEIJING. KAZINFORM - By launching the One Belt, One Road initiative, China has taken up the role of a new driver stimulating international cooperation, believes President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev.
"We now see that the initiative has been a timely response to arising economic and humanitarian crises worldwide," President Nazarbayev said at the roundtable summit at the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing on Monday.
"Paternalism and politically motivated sanctions have made the lives of millions of people around the globe worse. As a result, global economy and trade has been in downturn for the past couple of years. In such conditions the world needed a new driver to stimulate international cooperation. So, China has taken up the role by proposing this initiative," the Head of State noted.
According to the Kazakh leader, the One Belt, One Road initiative shapes up a new geo-economical paradigm. Its successful implementation will benefit over 4,5 billion people in the countries located along the Silk Road route and open up new markets for China.
"First of all, by launching the One Belt, One Road initiative, China demonstrated to the world a new model of regional cooperation. The proposed approach - stability through joint development - is an attractive format of international cooperation reflecting economic interests of dozens of countries along the Silk Road route. The goal of the forum is to coordinate macro-regional cooperation along the Silk Road route," Nazarbayev stressed.
"Secondly," the Kazakh President continued, "implementation of the One Belt, One Road initiative will allow entire regions, including Central Asia and Kazakhstan, to position themselves differently in the global context. Presently, Central Asia has gained strategic importance, having become the bridge between the largest markets. Every year more and more fast routes are developed from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Thanks to that, volume of trade in Eurasia only is expected to exceed $1.2 trillion by 2020."
As a reminder, Nursultan Nazarbayev is on a two-day visit to China to participate in the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing.