China, Russia and Mongolia have confirmed the extension of the Outline of the Development Plan on Establishing the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor by five years, the three countries announced in a trilateral meeting on Thursday in the Uzbek city of Samarkand.

The three countries officially launched the feasibility study on the upgrade and development of the central-route railway of the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor and agreed to move forward with the project on the Mongolian section of the China-Russia natural gas pipeline, according to a statement.

The trilateral meeting, the sixth of its kind, was attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh on the sidelines of the 22nd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).