ASTANA - China Media Group (CMG) held a China-Kazakhstan cultural exchange event titled "A New Chapter of History Connecting Mountains and Rivers" in Astana on Tuesday, as Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived for the 24th Session of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's Council of Heads of State and a state visit to Kazakhstan.
The event was attended by nearly 100 distinguished guests from various fields of Kazakh culture, who witnessed the announcement of several cooperation projects and the documentary film "Common Dreams", a co-production between China and Kazakhstan.
The opening photo is a view of the China-Kazakhstan cultural exchange event hosted by CMG in Astana, Kazakhstan, on July 2, 2024. /CMG
CMG President Shen Haixiong delivers a speech at the China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange held in Astana, Kazakhstan, July 2, 2024. /CMG
CMG President Shen Haixiong delivered a speech in which he said that CMG has always been committed to promoting cultural and people-to-people exchanges between China and Kazakhstan. CMG has reported many times on the story of Chinese musician Xiang Xinghai and Kazakh musician Bakhytzhan Baikadamov, who met each other in Almaty and established a deep friendship. He believed that the launch of the Sino-Kazakh co-production documentary "Common Dreams" and other cooperation projects would further strengthen mutual understanding and exchanges between the two nations and jointly promote the building of a community with a common future for mankind.
Kazakhstan's Minister of Culture and Information Aida Balaeva delivers a speech at the China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange held in Astana, Kazakhstan, July 2, 2024. /CMG
Kazakh Minister of Culture and Information Aida Balaeva said in her speech that the peoples of Kazakhstan and China have enjoyed a history of friendly exchanges for thousands of years; the two countries are closely linked by the ancient Silk Road. In recent years, cooperation between Kazakh media and China Media Group has played a positive role in people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. She said the Ministry of Culture and Information of Kazakhstan will continue to maintain close cooperation with CMG in disseminating the history, culture, customs and folkways of the two countries.
Director of the Kazakh Presidential Television and Radio Complex Kazhibayeva Raushan Zhanabergenovna delivers a speech at the China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange held in Astana on July 2, 2024. /CMG
In a speech delivered by Raushan Zhanabergenovna Raushan, Director of the Kazakh Presidential Television and Radio Complex, Kazhibayeva said that a number of high quality CMG programmes have been broadcast in Kazakhstan, which have strongly promoted dialogue between the two civilisations. Kazhibayeva said the two sides will jointly produce more programs and documentaries to showcase cultural treasures and represent the achievements of economic and social development of China and Kazakhstan.
Deputy Minister of Tourism and Sports of Kazakhstan Yerzhan Malikovich delivers a speech at the China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange held in Astana, Kazakhstan, July 2, 2024. /CMG
Deputy Minister of Tourism and Sports of Kazakhstan Yerzhan Malikovich made a speech in which he said that travel between the two countries has become more comfortable since the visa-free policy came into force. He noted that cooperation in the field of tourism has great potential and broad prospects and that the co-production of the documentary "Common Dreams" is a good start for further cooperation.
"Together with CMG, we can strengthen our cooperation in content production and event organisation to attract more Chinese tourists to Kazakhstan and experience its beautiful nature and colourful culture," Malikovic said.
Acting Director General of Astana International Financial Center Temirlan Mukhanbetzhanov delivers a speech at the China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange held in Astana, Kazakhstan, July 2, 2024. /CMG
Acting Director General of the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) Temirlan Mukhanbetzhanov noted in his speech that cultural and people-to-people exchanges serve as a solid foundation for financial cooperation between the two countries.
"AIFC is an important venue in the Eurasian region and a financial platform for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative. We look forward to working with the CMG to implement exchanges in multiple areas and to support the quality development of the Belt and Road, which will contribute to the economic and cultural prosperity of both countries," said Mukhanbetzanov.
Chinese Ambassador to Kazakhstan Zhang Xiao said in his video message that China and Kazakhstan are geographically close and have a long history of cultural exchanges. Cultural and people-to-people exchanges are an important part and driving force of China-Kazakhstan relations.
He noted that the event is of great significance as it takes place during the state visit of President Xi Jinping. It can sum up the achievements so far and open a new stage of cultural cooperation and exchanges.
Liang Jianzeng, editorial director of CMG, exchanges a memorandum of cooperation with Yerlan Sydykov, president of the Eurasian National University in Astana, Kazakhstan, on July 2, 2024. /CMG
The event also featured the documentary "Common Dreams". It shows the cooperation and joint construction between China and Kazakhstan in the fields of humanities, arts, ecology, economy and trade. It was co-produced by CMG and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Kazakhstan and is the first and largest joint production. The documentary, which consists of three 26-minute episodes, will be broadcast from July 2 to 5 on Kazakh state television and on CMG's international channel (CCTV-4).
Several agreements on future cooperation were signed at the event. CMG Research Institute and Eurasian National University in Kazakhstan reached an agreement on further deepening their cooperation and exchanged a memorandum. Both sides will promote innovation in media technology and strengthen the exchange of academics and think tanks. Eurasian National University was founded in 1996 and is the largest comprehensive university in Kazakhstan.
CMG has also signed memoranda of cooperation with the Astana International Financial Centre and the Kazakhstan State Tourism Corporation to strengthen the exchange of information in the field of economy and tourism.
Artists perform music composed by Chinese and Kazakh composers at the China-Kazakhstan Cultural Exchange in Astana, Kazakhstan, on July 2, 2024.
Baikadam's daughter Baikadam was also invited to the event and held a video interview with Sian Singh Sian's daughter Nina. They talked about the touching stories between the two families, showing that the friendship between the two countries is passed on to the next generation. Afterwards, the Kazakh artists performed excerpts from the symphonic poem "Xian Xinghai" and the Chinese classical song "In the Field of Hope".
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