China will host the fourth China-Central Asia Foreign Ministers' Meeting on Thursday in Xi'an, China, China Daily newspaper reported on Tuesday.
The meeting aims to prepare for an upcoming summit of the six countries' heads of state. State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang will chair the meeting, with Foreign Ministers or Deputy Foreign Ministers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan in attendance, the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said in a daily news conference on Tuesday.
The countries reached a consensus in the previous foreign ministers' meeting in Kazakhstan in June to establish a heads-of-state meeting mechanism and to hold a summit every two years. “China will host the first summit under the new mechanism,” Mao said, adding that the major goal for the Xi'an meeting is to make "full political preparations" for the summit.
Minister Qin has noted the importance of the summit, saying it is one of the major diplomatic events China will host in 2023, and that the country will strive to ensure its success.
The Xi'an meeting will provide an opportunity for the six countries to exchange views on China-Central Asia cooperation and on international and regional issues of shared interest.