As soon as the good news came out of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, Uzbekistan and Mongolia are planning to use the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway to establish a trade and transportation corridor between the two countries.
(China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway received a "big order")
From the 23rd to the 26th of this month, Mongolian President Khurilsukh visited Uzbekistan, which was the first visit by a Mongolian president to Uzbekistan since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries more than 30 years ago. Relevant reports show that Khurilsukh's trip can be said to be full of harvest, and a series of cooperation agreements have been reached with Uzbek President Mirziyoyev.
The two sides agreed that it is necessary to significantly increase the volume of trade between the two countries in the next few years, that is, at least 5 to 10 times the current scale of trade.
To this end, the two sides plan to increase the number of import and export products required by each other. For example, Uzbekistan can export food, fertilizers, construction materials, etc., to Mongolia, and increase the supply of meat and manufactured goods such as leather and wool to Mongolia.
The two sides will also set up a dedicated joint working group to establish a trade center between the two countries and draft a relevant preferential trade agreement. In addition to this, cooperation in industry is planned, with a focus on geological exploration, raw material development, processing areas, etc.
It is not difficult to see that Mongolia and Uzbekistan are still very sincere in wanting to expand economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. So now that there is a consensus on expanding cooperation, the next question is how to implement it.
(Mongolia and Ukraine want to expand economic and trade cooperation)
As we all know, Uzbekistan and Mongolia are both landlocked countries, Mongolia is tightly surrounded by China and Russia, and Uzbekistan is a "double landlocked country", surrounded by the other four Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.
This means that if these two countries want to expand economic and trade cooperation, they must pass through other countries, and only land transportation is the most suitable. Needless to say, the cost of shipping a double landlocked country and a landlocked country is bound to be terrifyingly high.
The same is true for air freight, which is economically backward and cannot afford to use such a costly mode of transport by air. Therefore, land transport is the best option.
Then the question arises again, Mongolia is surrounded by China and Russia, if they want to transport by land, they only have two ways to go, one is to pass through Russia, and the other is to pass through China, so which road is the most suitable? For us, this is the main event after Mongolia and Uzbekistan decided to expand economic and trade cooperation.
To put it nicely, at present, Uzbekistan and Mongolia want to expand economic and trade cooperation, because there is still a lot of room for improvement in cooperation between the two countries, but in fact this also shows that the share of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries is still too small.
(Mongolia and Uzbekistan have a lot of room for improvement)
The reason for this phenomenon is precisely because the trade and transportation routes between the two countries are too single. Previously, Mongolia could only choose the transportation route through Russia, after all, the track gauge between Russia and Central Asian countries is the same.
It's just that the efficiency of Russia's transport industry is obvious to all, and if Russian railways can expand economic and trade cooperation with Uzbekistan, they have already done so, so the key to Mongolia's current economic and trade cooperation with Uzbekistan is precisely in the transit of China.
According to relevant reports, Mirziyoyev and Khurilsukh reached a consensus to establish the most affordable and convenient transport corridor between the two countries, and to consider the use of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway line. In other words, the two heads of state want to use the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway to establish a transport corridor between the two sides.
Uzbekistan is a participant in the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, Mongolia is also close to the northwest of the mainland, and the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway happens to start from the Xinjiang region of the mainland, so the most affordable and convenient transport corridor between the two countries is the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.
(The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is a new opportunity for cooperation between Mongolia and Ukraine)
Earlier this month, the signing ceremony of the trilateral agreement on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project was held in Beijing. The signing of this agreement is of great significance, which means that the project has a solid legal foundation, and the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is no longer an idea, but has become a reality, and it is also the first step to start construction.
The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is not only the shortest land transport channel to Central Asia, but also the most convenient passage from East Asia and South Asia to Central Asia, West Asia, North Africa and Southern Europe. The President of Mongolia is obviously also eyeing this opportunity, and reached this consensus with Uzbekistan not long after the good news of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway came out, wanting to catch the train of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway.
For us, we are naturally happy to see Mongolia want to participate in it, after all, Mongolia is so special in its geographical location that it is often targeted by Western countries. At the same time, Mongolia itself is trying to develop its so-called "third neighbor" policy, and in the process, it gives Western countries a good opportunity to penetrate Mongolia, which is a potential threat to both China and Russia.
(The United States has also been courting Mongolia)
Therefore, as long as Mongolia participates in the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway, it will inevitably create a group of vested interests within Mongolia, which will be more deeply tied to the interests of China and Central Asian countries. In the future, when facing the lure of Western countries or being forced to choose a side, Mongolia will inevitably have some scruples.
What's more, we ourselves are promoting the linkage between countries in the region, advocating a community with a shared future, and jointly maintaining regional peace and stability, so more and more countries want to participate in the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, and of course we will welcome it.