(Kazinform News Agency讯) China has established trade relations with 124 countries around the world, among which Kazakhstan is one of its strategically significant cooperation partners. For our country, China's investment and vast market are highly attractive. Then, from China's perspective, what advantages and challenges does Kazakhstan have as a trading partner? To answer this question, Qu Bin, a shareholder of a large logistics company in China, recently provided an in-depth interpretation during an interview with the "Global Vision" column of the Silk Road TV Channel (Jibek Joly).

Kazinform: In terms of building domestic and international logistics networks, what are the key measures taken by China in recent years? What do you think are the most critical development directions?

Qu Bin: In recent years, China has improved infrastructure construction, such as professional and modern logistics industrial parks, strengthened the connection between railway and highway hubs, perfected multimodal transport, and enhanced supporting facilities like warehousing and sorting, introducing the Internet of Things to improve information levels. Moreover, it has strengthened cooperation with other countries, promoting logistics infrastructure cooperation, for example, advancing the construction of cross-border facilities of China-Kazakhstan and China-Russia railways. It has also improved the service level at ports, optimized customs clearance processes, increased efficiency, and accelerated customs clearance speed.

Kazinform: What role does the transit route through Kazakhstan play in China's foreign trade and logistics strategy? Is its importance rising?

Qu Bin: Definitely. The transit routes through Kazakhstan are not only a hub of the Belt and Road Initiative but also an important pivot for China to connect Europe and Asia, ensuring supply chain security, and promoting regional economic integration strategies. I believe that with Kazakhstan's status as an Eurasian hub becoming more prominent, it will continue to inject momentum into China's healthy economic development.

Kazinform: Compared with the traditional transportation route via Russia, what are the significant advantages and disadvantages of the route through Kazakhstan for China? How do you evaluate the complementarity or competitiveness of these two paths?

Qu Bin: Let me start with the weak points of Kazakhstan. Over the past decade, Kazakhstan has made great progress in infrastructure, but compared to Russia, it is still slightly weaker, especially in terms of road network coverage. This may affect the speed and quality of cargo transportation. Also, I think that compared to Russia's relatively well-developed transportation network, Kazakhstan's connectivity with neighboring countries is not very smooth, resulting in inefficiency in cargo transfer.

In terms of advantages, Kazakhstan has established good relations with China, and energy is relatively dependent on Chinese investment and markets. Actually, both sides are interdependent, which can establish a good stability.

Compared with China-Russia relations, there may be some geopolitical uncertainties. In terms of transportation costs, Kazakhstan borders China's western region, and part of the goods going through the Kazakhstan route is closer, so it is relatively more cost-effective.

Kazinform: What new cooperative opportunities have the "New Silk Road" initiative brought to China's trading partners? Have new industrial clusters or cooperation models emerged?

Qu Bin: As China is the largest trading partner of 124 countries, the "New Silk Road" connects various countries in Asia, Africa, and Europe, providing broader market space for enterprises in these countries. The trade volume between China and countries along the route is constantly growing, providing broader sales channels for the characteristic products of each country. This is my view.

Kazinform: In recent years, how have logistics hubs like Xi'an and Almaty play new roles in regional logistics patterns? How has their role evolved?

Qu Bin: Xi'an is an inland city in China. Due to the emergence of the Belt and Road Initiative and China-Europe freight trains, it has become China's first large logistics hub city without access to the sea, building a global logistics network and transforming from a deep inland area to an open frontier. As for Almaty, it has transitioned from a traffic node to a modern logistics hub. Almaty is the most important hub in Kazakhstan, with the largest international airport. Railway connections link Central Asia, the Urals, and Northwest China, and with the upgrade of infrastructure, it is gradually becoming a modern large logistics hub city.

Kazinform: What are the main obstacles currently faced by both China and Kazakhstan in transit transport practice? What improvement measures are being promoted?

Qu Bin: To my knowledge, starting from March 2024, Kazakhstan will conduct a 100% unpacking inspection on goods transiting from China, which has prolonged the transit time at ports and caused cargo backlog. This particularly increases the risk for e-commerce and high-value goods. Moreover, China and Kazakhstan lack unified standards in customs policies and railway freight discounts, whereas consistent transit rates have already been formed along the Caspian Sea, such as in Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, etc.

Kazinform: So, based on your experience, which way do you think will dominate between Kazakhstan and China?

Qu Bin: Between Kazakhstan and China, I am optimistic about road transport. After all, the two countries are adjacent at the border crossings, and the limitations of road transport are relatively smaller. Loading and unloading are convenient, and door-to-door services can be provided, which is more convenient for customers.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7509641482610016807/

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