An event marking cooperation and exchanges between Shandong province and Kazakhstan is held in Astana, the Kazakh capital, on Sept 4. [Photo by Zhang Shuo/Chinanews]

An event marking cooperation and exchanges between East China's Shandong province and Kazakhstan, which also commemorated the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative, was held in Astana, the Kazakh capital, on Sept 4.

Serik Zhumangarin, the deputy prime minister and minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, and Lin Wu, Party chief of Shandong, as well as hundreds of Chinese and Kazakh political and business representatives attended the event.

In his speech, Zhumangarin said that China is one of Kazakhstan's major trade and investment strategic partners, and Shandong ranks among the top three in terms of trade volume with Kazakhstan among all Chinese provinces.

Hundreds of Chinese and Kazakh political and business representatives attend the event. [Photo by Zhang Shuo/Chinanews]

The Kazakh side is willing to strengthen practical cooperation with Shandong in the fields of agriculture, logistics and investment, he said.

In his keynote speech delivered at the event, Lin expressed his confidence and expectations of deepening cooperation between Shandong and Kazakhstan.

In 2022, the total import and export volume between Shandong and Kazakhstan reached $1.98 billion, a year-on-year increase of 1.67, accounting for 58.8 percent of Shandong 's total import and exports with Central Asian countries. The "Qilu" China-Europe freight train has also now reached seven cities in Kazakhstan.

On the sidelines of the event, a project signing ceremony was held, with 14 cooperation documents signed, including the "Memorandum of Cooperation between the Department of Commerce of Shandong Province and the Kazakhstan International Trade Chamber" and the "Logistics Cooperation Project between the SCO Demonstration Zone and the Almaty-Dam Industrial Logistics Center".