Chinese President Hu Jintao's just-concluded tour, a major diplomatic move by China in the Eurasian region, is fruitful with far-reaching influence, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Saturday.

 

During the five-day tour, which started on Aug. 14, Hu paid state visit to Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, participated in a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Bishkek and observed an anti-terror drill in Russia.

 

His visit has promoted cooperation among neighboring countries and the common development of SCO member states and helped to improve China's relations with Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Russia, to safeguard security and stability of the region, and to stimulate the long-term, healthy and stable development of the SCO, Yang told Xinhua on the way back to Beijing.

 

During his first-ever visit to Kyrgyzstan, Hu and his Kyrgyz counterpart Kurmanbek Bakiyev jointly mapped out the direction for future development of bilateral ties.

 

Both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in economy, trade, transport, energy, humanities and their fight against the "three evil forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism, and to enhance the mutually beneficial cooperation within the framework of the SCO.

 

During his visit to Kazakhstan, Hu met his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev. It is another important meeting between the two leaders after Nazarbayev's visit to Beijing last year.

 

Both leaders reached important consensus on the deepening of overall exchanges and cooperation in the fields of politics, security, economy, trade, energy and humanities.

 

Hu's visit injected new impetus to China's pragmatic cooperation with the two countries in various fields, cemented the traditional friendship between China and the two Central Asian countries and helped China-Kyrgyzstan good-neighborliness and the China-Kazakhstan strategic partnership develop in a rapid and sustainable way.

 

In a speech delivered at the SCO summit, Hu proposed that China should make contribution to promoting the organization's sustainable and sound development.

 

He pointed out that the organization should continue to promote good-neighborliness, common development, cultural exchanges and opening-up policy. His remarks, which showed China's sincerity of and determination in promoting the SCO development, were welcomed by all the SCO member states.

 

The leaders of the SCO member countries signed a treaty on long-term good-neighborhood, friendship and cooperation, thus cementing the political mutual trust and good-neighborliness among the SCO members and laid the political and legal foundation for the region's long-term peace and common development.

 

They also signed the Bishkek Declaration and issued a joint communique.

 

Heads of state from the member countries of the SCO observed the first ever joint anti-terrorism drill, which not only bolstered the troop's morale but also enhanced the member states' coordinating capability in jointly cracking down on the three evil forces and showed their determination and willpower to safeguard regional security and stability.

 

The drill consolidated mutual trust among the SCO members, deepened their practical cooperation, promoted common development and improved the international reputation of the SCO.

 

The Chinese president and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held talks during the Bishkek summit and the joint military drill.

 

Their talks proved to be fruitful as they outlined plans and detailed steps in terms of boosting bilateral ties and also made in-depth and candid discussions about strategic security cooperation as well as major international and regional issues.

 

The two sides pledged to improve practical cooperation in various fields and strive to begin the work of the China-Russia commercial chamber of machinery and electric products at an early date.

 

They would also step up the negotiation process of crude oil pipeline construction and natural gas projects and identify the priorities in their investment and cooperation.

 

The two sides also agreed to lose no time in working out the middle and long-term plans for China-Russia regional cooperation.

 

Hu and Putin agreed to further implement the Sino-Russian strategic security negotiation, to strengthen cooperation in the cracking down on the "three evil forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism, and to join forces to tackle other major security issues, in a bid to protect the strategic interests of both countries, the foreign minister said.

 

Hu also held in-depth exchange of views with President Putin on major international and regional issues such as the development of the SCO, how to bring the UN into better play, and have reached a broad consensus, Yang said.

 

The consensus of the two leaders would comprehensively promote the concrete cooperation between the two countries in various fields, and push the Sino-Russian strategic cooperation partnership to a higher level, according to the Chinese minister.

 

On the sidelines of the Bishkek summit, Hu also met with the presidents of Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Iran and Afghanistan, discussing with them bilateral relations and issues of common concern. President Hu exchanged views with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Iran's nuclear issue.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 19, 2007)