Turkmenistan

President Xi Jinping underlined on Thursday China's readiness to strengthen the alignment between the Belt and Road Initiative and Turkmenistan's initiative to revive the Great Silk Road to make the ancient route a "road to happiness" in the new era.

Xi made the remark during a meeting with Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, national leader of the Turkmen people and chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan.

Xi said China is a reliable friend and partner of Turkmenistan, and advancing the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations is in line with the fundamental interests of both countries and the common aspirations of the two peoples.

China is willing to work with Turkmenistan to continue to uphold the principle of mutual respect and win-win cooperation, and to push for steady and long-term development of bilateral relations, he said.

Xi emphasized that mutual support is the essence of the China-Turkmenistan community with a shared future. China appreciates Turkmenistan's strong support on issues concerning China's core interests and major concerns. He pledged continuous support to Turkmenistan in safeguarding its national sovereignty, security and development interests and pursuing a development path that suits its national conditions.

Both sides should scale up trade and expand cooperation in areas such as healthcare, sports, tourism and culture. Efforts should also be made to hold mutual Cultural Year activities and enable the establishment of the Luban Workshop project in Turkmenistan at an early date, Xi said.

Berdimuhamedov said that China and Turkmenistan have a deep tradition of being good neighbors, and their friendship has remained strong.

The alignment between Turkmenistan's initiative to revive the Great Silk Road and the Belt and Road Initiative has greatly facilitated the connectivity and revitalization of both countries and the region, he said.

Both sides should carry forward their friendship, pass down the brotherly relationship from generation to generation and maintain mutual trust, understanding and support. They should also deepen economic and energy cooperation and promote people-to-people exchanges, he added.

The leaders of both countries witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents, including an agreement on economic and technical cooperation.

XU WEI