Kazakhstan is an important participant of the Belt and Road Initiative. As part of our looking back at five years of the initiative, CGTN sat down with Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev. He said it embodies a great vision and signals deeper ties between China and Kazakhstan.

NURSULTAN NAZARBAYEVPRESIDENT OF KAZAKHSTAN "Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the initiative when he paid a state visit to Kazakhstan in 2013. It was a new proposal. Five years later, we can say it is a grand initiative. Back in 2012, the world was experiencing an economic downturn. Many countries were in serious economic crisis. The Belt and Road Initiative was necessary and helpful to walk out of the crisis. Many countries welcomed the initiative."

President Nazarbayev said the Initiative helps his country with its new economic policy, called "The Bright Road" because Kazakhstan is an important hub for reaching Europe. The construction of cross-border railways and roads through Kazakhstan, including the Western Europe-Western China Highway, helps the local economy. Kazakhstan has set up a dock in China's coastal city Lianyungang. This has shortened travel time from Southeast Asia to Europe, to as little as 12 days.

NURSULTAN NAZARBAYEV PRESIDENT OF KAZAKHSTAN "We have agreed to establish some new companies in our country to deepen the cooperation. The initiative helps our economy and other participants. We have been doing a lot of work. I think the initiative holds a great vision and benefits for people of both countries."