Anisha Bhaduri says it’s time for Hong Kong to deepen international relations, explore new partnerships, and champion core competences

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s meeting last week with Kazakhstan’s visiting Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev served not only to underline the strategic engagement facilitated by his visit to Central Asia earlier this month but also to enhance the gravitas of the commitments made and formalized.

Kazakhstan is Hong Kong’s largest trading partner in Central Asia and is where the Belt and Road Initiative was first proposed, as iterated by the chief executive during his meeting with Bozumbayev. During his recent visit to the country, Lee witnessed the inking of pacts ranging across trade and economic cooperation, investment, finance, technology and aviation, including eight government-level cooperation documents and 53 cooperation agreements and memorandums of understanding. Clearly, the Hong Kong delegation’s call on the Central Asian country was both impactful and fruitful.

The Kazakh deputy prime minister’s visit to Hong Kong not only helped, as the chief executive said, “to further follow up on these outcomes”, but also invested the follow-up with a structured affirmation that went beyond diplomatic politeness to signal a commitment that is likely to be more than appreciated by future investors and Central Asia watchers expecting lasting developments in the region.

READ MORE: Expert: CE’s Central Asia trip to help construct SAR’s five-year plan

Such expectations, naturally, carry wide significance amid both current geopolitical upheavals and Hong Kong’s sustained efforts to diversify beyond its traditional bases of engagement. Four of the five Central Asian states — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan — are members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

Also on June 10, the day Lee met Bozumbayev in Hong Kong, the 2026 International Conference for Trans-Altai Subregional Cooperation opened in Altay, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Government and business delegates from China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Mongolia, and Russia were in attendance along with, for the first time, representatives from Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. The Altai subregion covers roughly 780,000 square kilometers, has a population of more than 5.2 million and is located in the heart of Eurasia.

Xinhua News Agency reported that Chen Xiaojiang, secretary of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regional committee of the Communist Party of China, “mentioned in a keynote speech that stronger cooperation in the Altai subregion now enjoys favorable conditions as regional economic integration gathers pace”. He added, “Xinjiang will help tighten the bonds of shared interests and contribute to building a regional community with a shared future.” Chen’s vision for the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region’s centrality in promoting subregional cooperation aligns with the conference’s theme, “Building cooperation momentum for shared development and prosperity”. In particular, this draws attention to the vast possibilities of overland trade routes.

Coming back to Kazakhstan, in late May, Bloomberg quoted Talgat Aldybergenov, chief executive officer at Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, as saying that the Central Asian nation is turning its national railway into a key transit operator with total investment in infrastructure development expected to reach $10 billion by 2030, with about half of that already spent. According to the report, railway tracks stretching 900 kilometers are scheduled to be laid this year, including a new 300-km Ayagoz-Bakhty section to China, creating the third China-Kazakhstan rail border crossing. In fact, the railroad company is considering listing its shares in London or Hong Kong as early as this year.

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As such, the Kazakh deputy prime minister’s visit to Hong Kong not only acquires special significance but also, the timing of the chief executive’s Central Asia trip, once again, shines the light firmly on the city’s superconnector and super value-adder status.

But there is more to it than that.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po rightly pointed out at the keynote luncheon of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council Branch Director’s Meeting on Monday that “Hong Kong is no longer simply connecting the dots; we are helping to create the next generation of opportunities. And at this rare moment of global realignment, we cannot afford to miss our chance.”

Indeed, this is the moment for Hong Kong to elevate its global stature by deepening international relations, exploring new partnerships, and championing core competences in a way that honors national objectives while setting clear near- and long-term priorities.  

The author is an award-winning English-language fiction writer and current-affairs commentator.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.