Russia, China interested in stable development of Central Asian nations, envoy says

BEIJING, January 25. /TASS/. Moscow and Beijing are interested in the stable and predictable development of Central Asian nations, Russian Ambassador to China Andrey Denisov said at a press conference on Tuesday. "Central Asian states are natural partners both for China and Russia. They are our neighbors, they are our close friends and as far as Russia is concerned, they are the nations that used to be part of the same country with us 30 years ago," the envoy pointed out. "The interests that both our country and China have in Central Asia are closely intertwined but they go in the same direction," he stressed. "Both Russia and China are equally interested in the stable, predictable and prosperous Central Asian neighbors," Denisov added. "I don’t see any issues that could possibly emerge on this track," the Russian ambassador noted. Denisov highlighted the special role of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) that brings together Central Asian countries, Russia and China. Within the SCO, "we have the ability to solve the problems that concern all the countries at once," the envoy concluded. Read more