Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli on July 12 held talks with First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Bakytzhan Sagintayev in Beijing, and agreed to step up the alignment of development strategies of the two countries. Zhang and Sagintayev are co-chairs of the China-Kazakhstan Cooperation Committee.

Zhang called on the two sides to jointly promote the Silk Road Economic Belt initiative, advance manufacturing capacity cooperation and further encourage and protect mutual investment.

He also called for deepened cooperation on finance, infrastructure connectivity, oil and gas, agriculture, people-to-people exchanges and tourism.

Sagintayev said Kazakhstan attaches great importance to relations with China and is willing to dovetail its new economic policy of the Bright Road with the China-proposed Silk Road Economic Belt.

Kazakhstan is willing to expand and deepen all-round cooperation with China, so as to open a new chapter for bilateral ties, he said.

The two sides also reviewed the results of cooperation which have been achieved since the 7th meeting of the China-Kazakhstan Cooperation Committee.

The committee, established in 2004, oversees bilateral cooperation ranging from trade, transport, to science and technology.