Translated with AI
Combating desertification with scientific and technological innovation in environmental management, powering remote areas with clean energy technologies, electric vehicles leading a green transportation revolution, sustainable scientific laboratories benefiting the entire region… Innovative cooperation between China and Central Asian countries in green infrastructure, green energy and green transportation has been continuously deepened, promoting the dynamic formation of a closer community with a shared future for China and Central Asia.
More than two thousand years ago, during the Han Dynasty, Chinese diplomat Zhang Qian traveled to the Western Frontier, opening the door for friendly exchanges between China and Central Asia. This led to the rise and prosperity of the Silk Road. Today, friendship envoys from China and Central Asian countries are joining forces to promote high-quality and green construction under the Belt and Road Initiative, creating a picturesque canvas of the Silk Road in the new era.
GREEN HOPE FOR THE "TEARS OF CENTRAL ASIA"
In late May, Wang Ping, a researcher at the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, arrived in the western Uzbek city of Nukus to participate in joint research with the Aral Sea International Innovation Center. He can no longer count how many times he has visited the city near the Aral Sea. This time, he and his colleagues brought back two “treasures”: halophyte seeds (plants that easily adapt to life in saline soils) and solar panels.
The Aral Sea, located in central Eurasia on the border of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, was once the fourth-largest lake in the world. Since the 1960s, under the influence of numerous factors such as increased human use of water and climate change, it has been rapidly drying up – its area has shrunk by more than 90 percent. The shoreline has retreated, the soil has become more saline, and a desert of more than 50,000 square kilometers has formed in its place. The Aral Sea has become a symbol of the catastrophe – it is called the “tears of Central Asia.”
The ecological crisis of the Aral Sea has caused not only a shortage of water resources, but also huge rock formations have formed on the seabed, causing dust and salt storms that damage vast territories. Desertification, soil salinization, loss of biodiversity – all this has a significant negative impact on the ecology and economy of the countries in the region.
"China will cooperate with Central Asian countries in developing and improving saline and alkaline lands, water-saving irrigation, overcoming the Aral Sea crisis, and building high-tech enterprises and IT parks in Central Asia," Chinese President Xi Jinping said at the first China-Central Asia Summit in Xi'an in May 2023.
"This is a very accurate guide," says Wang Ping. "Water shortage, soil salinity, lack of modern agricultural technologies and related systems – these are all acute problems holding back the development of Central Asia."
Scientists from China and Uzbekistan are working together to find solutions to the Aral Sea's environmental crisis — from joint scientific expeditions and soil reclamation to the creation of model regions where water-saving cotton-growing technologies are used.
This time, Wang Ping brought to Nukus seeds of more than ten types of halophytes (saltwort, saxaul, wormwood, etc.), hoping to successfully grow them in laboratory conditions and then mass-produce them around the Aral Sea to restore biodiversity and combat salinization and dust storms.
He also traveled to Muynak, a small town on the Aral Sea coast, to help install and use solar panels to power a halophyte irrigation system. For two years now, Chinese experts have been implementing a project to integrate, test, and demonstrate photovoltaic systems in the ecological management of the Aral Sea.
Uzbek political commentator Sharofiddin Tulaganov noted that cooperation between Uzbekistan and China in the environmental management of the Aral Sea has already yielded noticeable results, and China's contribution deserves respect. "The environmental crisis of the Aral Sea is a common problem for the region, and no country can cope with it alone. The proposal by Chinese President Xi Jinping to promote environmental innovation is a far-sighted and realistic approach that meets our common aspirations for sustainable development."
NEW IMPULSES FOR THE ENERGY TRANSITION
Gao Yun, a resident of Khorgos in Xinjiang, has been working in the cross-border delivery of Chinese electric cars to Kazakhstan for two years. She drives new cars across the border and then returns to China on an international bus.
During this time, she noticed two changes: clearance at the Khorgos border crossing became much faster – from more than 20 hours to almost half; in addition, the export of Chinese electric cars to Central Asian countries has increased significantly.
"Bringing Chinese electric cars to Central Asia is a meaningful job for me," says Gao Yun, who is proud to see Chinese brands go global and her hometown become an important export hub.
With the construction of the green Belt and Road Initiative, more and more Chinese electric vehicles are entering the Central Asian markets, promoting the region's green development and opening up new horizons for Chinese companies.
In June, Chinese electric cars delight the eye with their bright green color on the streets of Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. The country's government announced that all city taxis must be replaced by electric cars by September 1. Thanks to their high quality, Chinese brands are very popular with drivers.
From new energy vehicles to clean energy projects such as photovoltaics, hydropower and wind power, the potential for cooperation between China and Central Asian countries in energy transition continues to unfold.
About 75 km south of Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, is a solar photovoltaic power plant. It was built by a Chinese company as part of the Buka project. Once commissioned, it will generate more than 570,000 MWh of electricity per year. This will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 440,000 tons. The project is expected to significantly improve local energy supply and contribute to the energy transition in the country.
Engineer Ulugbek Mamatkulov, who works on the project, says that for him, the project is a symbol of friendship, beauty and prosperity. He is grateful to the Chinese specialists for their valuable knowledge and experience, and notes that Uzbek and Chinese colleagues are working together to turn the desert into an energy base. He hopes to apply the knowledge and experience he has gained to other clean energy projects in Uzbekistan and other regions.
The hydroelectric power station on the Turgusun River in Kazakhstan is the first major hydroelectric cooperation project between China and Kazakhstan under the Belt and Road Initiative. The annual electricity generation is 79.8 million kWh, and the hydroelectric power station reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 72,000 tons.
Karaubek Baimukhambetov, a technical consultant for the hydroelectric power station, noted that President Xi Jinping, during his visit to Kazakhstan in 2024, specifically mentioned the project in an opinion piece for local media as an example of successful strategic cooperation. "This is recognition of the importance of Kazakh-Chinese cooperation in the field of green development," he said. "We will continue to implement practical projects."
CREATION OF ECOLOGICAL SCIENTIFIC PLATFORMS
At the first China-Central Asia Summit, President Xi Jinping noted that China welcomes the participation of Central Asian countries in the Belt and Road cooperation programs on sustainable development technologies, innovation and entrepreneurship, and information technology in the space industry.
At the beginning of this year, the Kazakh-Chinese Center for Science and Technology Transfer was established at the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) of Kazakhstan. It is this project of cooperation in the field of sustainable development that the President of the Academy, Akhilbek Kurishbayev, pays the most attention to.
According to him, the creation of this center makes it possible to form a sustainable scientific platform for the entire Central Asian region, allowing scientists to work according to a single program, systematize the exchange of scientific data, coordinate the work of research organizations, and train scientific personnel.
One of the key areas of work of the new center was the creation of the International Joint Laboratory of Spatio-Temporal Artificial Intelligence and Sustainable Development, organized with the participation of Zhejiang University of Technology and a number of Chinese high-tech companies. Executive Director from the Kazakh side Duman Imanmadi demonstrated the Sigma emergency response vehicle designed in the laboratory, equipped with radars, 3D displays and four servers, and capable of responding to emergency situations (floods, earthquakes, landslides, avalanches, etc.), ensuring effective management and accurate planning.
The laboratory also developed a platform for modeling and predicting natural disasters using spatio-temporal AI, explored mineral resources using AI, researched precision farming and smart agriculture technologies using digital technologies, etc. In the future, these technologies are expected to be applied in the fields of AI, space information, green energy, ecology, and rescue operations throughout the region.
A. Kurishbayev noted that he was deeply impressed by the fact that Xi Jinping attaches great importance to China's cooperation with the Central Asian countries in the field of green development. "His idea of reviving the Great Silk Road, his Belt and Road initiative, preserving the environment and ecology not only fully correspond to the fundamental interests of the entire world community, but also remind the inhabitants of the Earth of the common destiny of mankind and the need to protect the planet with joint efforts. In my opinion, he is one of the strongest and most far-sighted world leaders of our time, who has brought China to the forefront," he says.
"It is extremely important for us to search for new environmentally friendly technologies that will allow us to move away from "dirty" production, take the path of green development and, on this basis, create conditions for a more comfortable life not only for the present but also for future generations. This is our sacred duty and we have no other way," he concluded.
