Xi urges joint efforts to open up new prospects for Asian security, development

DUSHANBE - Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday urged Asian countries and their partners to join hands in opening up new prospects for Asian security and development under new circumstances.

Addressing the fifth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) held in Tajikistan, Xi called on CICA members to build an Asia featuring mutual respect and trust, security and stability, development and prosperity, openness and inclusiveness, as well as cooperation and innovation.

China will steadfastly pursue a peaceful development path, stick to opening up and all-win approaches, uphold multilateralism, and work together with all sides to create a better future for Asia and the world, said the Chinese president.

Hosted by Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, the CICA summit was attended by leaders or representatives of Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Qatar, Russia, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Uzbekistan and other member countries, as well as representatives of observer states and relevant international and regional organizations.

Participants exchanged views on the theme "Shared Vision for a Secure and More Prosperous CICA Region," held in-depth discussion on international and regional issues of common concerns, jointly planned for Asia's long-lasting peace and shared prosperity, and reached extensive consensus.

In his address, Xi hailed the CICA's positive contributions to promoting peace and development in Asia since its establishment 27 years ago, saying that the mechanism has been committed to increasing mutual trust and collaboration among member countries and safeguarding regional security and stability.

Xi recalled that on the 2014 CICA Shanghai summit, he put forward a new vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, and proposed exploring a new security and development path that fits Asian features and the common interests of relevant countries, which received positive responses from various parties.

China stands ready to work with all sides to deepen cooperation in various fields and push forward the CICA process onto new stages, he said.