A Chinese-Kyrygz border post in the Torugart Pass (AFP)
September 1, 2006 -- China has officially opened a network of 22 new transport routes to connect the border cities of China and Kazakhstan.
China will next month host a conference that will focus on the construction of new highways and railways to boost regional trade.
The Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation conference will take place in Urumqi, the capital of China's Xinjiang province, at a date that remains to be determined. Participants will include China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, and Azerbaijan.
Xinhua says nearly 90 transport routes currently connect China to its Central Asian neighbors.
China is considering building a highway to Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, and another to Mongolia and Russia.
(Xinhua, AFP)
RFE/RL Central Asia Report
RFE/RL Central Asia Report
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