China sends delegation to Kyrgyzstan for coordination
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A Chinese Foreign Ministry delegation is in Kyrgyzstan to show China's concern at violent ethnic clashes that have racked the country, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang Thursday.
The delegation arrived in Kyrgyzstan on June 16 and had met with the leaders, foreign minister, interior minister, chairman of the National Security Service and personalities from all walks of life of the country, as well as diplomatic missions of Russia and the United States in Kyrgyzstan, Qin told a regular news briefing.
China hoped the situation in Kyrgyzstan would stabilize at an early date, and especially that southern Kyrgyzstan would normalize its social order and restore social stability, he said.
Clashes broke out between Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks in mid-June in the southern Kyrgyz city of Osh and later spread to the region of Jalalabad, and have left 210 people dead, and 2,100 injured.
Figures from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs show an estimated 100,000 refugees have fled to neighboring Uzbekistan.
Qin said China valued its relation with Kyrgyzstan and was willing to enhance cooperation with the country in the areas ranging from politics, economy and trade, transportation, security, to culture.
China would continue to provide humanitarian assistance to Kyrgyzstan as its capacity allowed and would maintain close communication and coordination with relevant parties so as to ensure the peace, stability and development of Kyrgyzstan and of the Central Asia, he said.
The delegation is led by senior diplomat Gao Yusheng, a veteran in Central Asia affairs.
Gao is the former ambassador to Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Ukraine as well as the former deputy secretary of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
