On January 29, 2025, an agreement was signed in Khorgos City on the border between China and Kazakhstan. Pi Luping, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Khorgos Municipal Committee and Mayor of Xinjiang, China, and Sagenbeck Marati Rakhmbeldyevich, District Chief of Panfilov District, Jiete, Suzhou, Kazakhstan, clasped hands and jointly declared that the two cities were officially established as sister cities. This is not only a simple administrative contract signing, but also a powerful practice for deepening the cooperation of jointly building the the Belt and Road and promoting the coordinated development of regions at the beginning of 2025 in the border area, which is an important gateway of the land routes between China and Kazakhstan.

From living adjacent to each other to walking hand in hand

On the same day, the two sides officially signed the Agreement on the Conclusion of Sister City Relations, marking that the cooperation between Khorgos City and Panfilov District has entered a new stage of institutionalization and normalization. Pi Luping, Mayor of Khorgos, stressed in his speech that China Kazakhstan relations have a deep foundation and have achieved fruitful cooperation in the fields of trade logistics, infrastructure, culture and education. The establishment of friendly cities this time is an important measure for both regions to follow the trend of regional integration and seek long-term development together. The head of Panfilov District, Sagenbek Marati Rakhmbeldievic, responded and looked forward to working with Khorgos to promote the content of the agreement into specific cooperation projects as soon as possible and continue to expand friendly exchanges in various fields.

Focusing on customs clearance, commerce, and smart healthcare

After the agreement was signed, both parties clarified the future focus of cooperation. Mayor Pileping proposed that both sides fully leverage their respective geographical and resource advantages, explore new opportunities in improving port clearance facilitation, promoting trade liberalization, optimizing commercial logistics systems, and improving cross-border infrastructure, and carry out comprehensive and deep level cooperation, striving to create a model of cross-border cooperation and friendly exchanges. In particular, Khorgos promised to give full play to its professional advantages in medical facilities and technology and fully support the construction of smart medical system in Panfilov District. This proposal was positively responded by Kazakhstan.

Medical cooperation takes the lead in landing, on-site visits deepen understanding

The blueprint for cooperation has been drawn up, and practical actions will be taken immediately. As the first substantive achievement of the sister city relationship, Khorgos People's Hospital and Panfilov District General Hospital signed the Memorandum of Cross border Medical Cooperation on the site, laying a systematic foundation for the future professional exchanges, technical cooperation and resource sharing between the two sides in the medical and health field. Keywords: the Belt and Road news, the Belt and Road latest information

In addition, the Panfilov District delegation also visited Khorgos Highway Port, the Municipal People's Hospital, China Khorgos International Border Cooperation Center, cross-border tourism one-stop service center and other key points on the spot, which further deepened the understanding of Khorgos development and existing cooperation achievements between China and Khorgos through intuitive experience, and enhanced confidence for the follow-up of specific projects. Editor/Yang Beihua