BEIJING: China has vowed to strengthen regional cooperation to fight out terrorism in all its manifestation.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his meeting with Kyrgyz Prime Minister Sooronbay Jeenbekov held in Bishkek said his country is willing to work with regional countries to fight terrorism, separatism and extremism through strengthened security cooperation.
Li and his Kyrgyz counterpart signed a joint communiqué on bilateral cooperation in fields such as security, agriculture and production.
The agreement is especially timely since the Chinese embassy in Kyrgyzstan was attacked by a suicide car bomber on the morning of Aug 30. The attack injured three embassy personnel.
According to Chinese media's reports, Li rushed to the embassy upon his arrival in Bishkek, and said the embassy should rebuild damaged buildings as soon as possible. Security should be reinforced for Chinese diplomatic missions, Li said.
Such agreements are also key for Central Asian countries such as Kyrgyzstan, which have been victims of terrorism, separatism and extremism. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization, with both countries as founding members, has fought these forces since 2001.
Both countries have been part of joint anti-terrorism drills under the SCO framework each year.
Xing Guangcheng, an expert on Central Asia and Russian studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, suggested boosting two-way information sharing.
Security cooperation is the best way to fight terrorism, a cross-border problem in Central Asia, said Xu Tao, an expert on Central Asia studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.
Xu said both countries can increase exchanges in intelligence, technology and policy coordination to fight terror. "Chinaand Kyrgyzstan have maintained political trust as strategic partners and have promoted pragmatic cooperation. ... Chinawill do what it can to help Kyrgyzstan," Li told his counterpart.