Zhao Leji meets guests from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, BFA board members

China's top legislator Zhao Leji on Wednesday met separately with Azerbaijan's Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova and Kazakhstan's First Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar, who are in south China's Hainan Province for the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2026.

Zhao, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, also met with BFA Board Members and senior advisors on Wednesday.

During his meeting with Gafarova, Zhao said that China is ready to work with Azerbaijan to follow the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, expand economic, trade and investment cooperation, enhance connectivity, promote people-to-people exchanges, and jointly advance the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

The NPC stands ready to strengthen exchanges with the Milli Majlis – Azerbaijan's parliament – to provide legal safeguards for practical cooperation between the two countries, Zhao said.

Gafarova said Azerbaijan firmly adheres to the one-China principle, and is willing to strengthen cooperation with China across various fields and deepen exchanges between legislative bodies.

When meeting with Sklyar, Zhao noted that China and Kazakhstan are friendly neighbors and permanent comprehensive strategic partners.

China is ready to work with Kazakhstan to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, consolidate political mutual trust, deepen practical cooperation with high-quality Belt and Road cooperation as the main focus, enrich people-to-people exchanges, strengthen international coordination and cooperation, and promote China-Kazakhstan relations to a higher level, broader fields and deeper dimensions, Zhao said.

The NPC is willing to play an active role as a legislative body in advancing the friendship between China and Kazakhstan, he added.

Sklyar said Kazakhstan supports the global initiatives proposed by China, adding that Kazakhstan-China relations have been continuously deepening, and that Kazakhstan is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in various fields such as legislation, economy, trade and energy to promote the development of bilateral relations.

When meeting with members of the Board of Directors and senior advisors of the BFA, Zhao said China is ready to work with all parties to jointly implement the global initiatives and promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

China will always support the development of the BFA, Zhao said, stressing efforts to stay true to the founding purpose of the forum, keep pace with the times, and uphold openness and inclusiveness. He also expressed China's willingness to work with all countries to jointly build a clean, beautiful and sustainable world.

BFA Chairman Ban Ki-moon, who served as the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016, and other representatives spoke highly of the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity and the global initiatives proposed by China, expressing their willingness to make unremitting efforts to promote the development of the forum.