{"id":41460,"date":"2022-03-01T12:08:45","date_gmt":"2022-03-01T11:08:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/?p=41460"},"modified":"2023-11-02T19:26:27","modified_gmt":"2023-11-02T18:26:27","slug":"coronavirus-in-central-asia-an-opportunity-for-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novastan.org\/en\/uzbekistan\/coronavirus-in-central-asia-an-opportunity-for-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Coronavirus in Central Asia: An Opportunity for China?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

China\u2019s involvement in the race for vaccinations in Central Asia confirms its aim to increase relations with neighbouring countries, primed for over a decade with the New Silk Road project. However, resistance among citizens continues to slow Chinese ambitions. <\/strong>This article was originally published on Novastan\u2019s <\/strong>French website<\/strong><\/a> on 1st of March 2021.<\/strong>\n\nWhile the development of Coronavirus vaccinations takes a strategic turn, China plays its hand in Central Asia. According to the Chinese press agency Xinhue<\/a>, Beijing pledged to provide doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccines to Kyrgyzstan on the 5th<\/sup> of February 2021, the first case of such an offer worldwide. At the same time, Uzbekistan began testing of another Chinese vaccination<\/a>, developed by Anhui Zhifei Longcom<\/a>. The trials launched in November 2020 and are set to continue until May 2021. Radio Ozodlik<\/a>, the Uzbek branch of the American media Radio Free Europe, confirmed that Tashkent could even share co-authorship of the Chinese vaccine as they plan to produce it.\n\nRead More on Novastan <\/strong>: Mass Vaccination Programme Starts in Uzbekistan<\/strong><\/a>\n\nDiplomacy surrounding vaccinations is particularly delicate in Central Asia, where Russia and China both try to promote their respective vaccinations<\/a> as a part of their competition for regional dominance. The Russian vaccination Sputnik V has been chosen by the Uzbek<\/a>, Kazakh<\/a> and Kyrgyz<\/a> authorities for their mass vaccination programs.\n\nRead More on Novastan: Covid-19: Kazakhstan Starts Rollout of its QazVac jab<\/a><\/strong>\n\nThe race to deliver vaccinations is not, however, the only outcome of the current health crisis: the economic situation in Central Asian countries is rapidly deteriorating due to the shrinking global economy. This is particularly true for Turkmenistan, a country that depends almost entirely on oil exports, China being their main buyer. However, China\u2019s decreased oil demand<\/a>, which is linked to the pandemic, has destabilised this unique source of foreign income for Turkmenistan. The country\u2019s difficulty of exporting oil has paradoxically led to closer relations between the two countries, as Ashgabat depends more than ever on Chinese imports<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The New Silk Road <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

\nThe new strategy is only the latest in a long list. In an interview with French media Le Monde<\/a>, researcher Niva Yau describes China\u2019s strategy in Central Asia, which has long favoured importation of mineral and energy sources from Central Asian countries to meet the extremely high demands of the Chinese economic system. Certain Central Asian countries have therefore adapted their production to satisfy Chinese demand, especially oil production. Both Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are an example of this, two countries whose oil exportation is largely dependent on Chinese demand<\/a>.\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t

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