BEIJING (Reuters) - China's President Xi Jinping met Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Tuesday, and said that a "stable and vibrant" relationship was conducive to the development of both countries.
Tokayev was in Beijing to attend the Belt and Road Forum, Xi's ambitious global infrastructure initiative. The two leaders last met in May when China for the first time hosted an in-person summit of central Asian leaders.
Calling Tokayev an "old friend", Xi said the two countries should strengthen cooperation on Belt and Road as well as investment and trade, according to a statement by China's foreign ministry.
Xi also said China was willing to increase agricultural imports from Kazakhstan and widen the scale of railway freight and the use of international transport routes across the Caspian Sea.
"No matter how the international situation changes, China and Kazakhstan should adhere to their original intentions, watch over each other, and continuously promote the development of the permanent comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries," Xi said.
In the meeting, Tokayev said he was willing to strengthen communication and cooperation with China, the statement said.
On Monday, China National Offshore Oil Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding with Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company KazMunayGas JSC, also known as KMG, which included an agreement to conduct joint geological research as well as expand cooperation on existing oilfields, according to Chinese state media.
(Reporting by Liz Lee, Ella Cao and Bernard Orr; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Raju Gopalakrishnan and Miral Fahmy)
