IntelBrief: The Broader Implications of Xi Jinping’s Central Asia Visit

Bottom Line Up Front

• Chinese President Xi Jinping recently embarked on his first foreign tour since the pandemic began, visiting Kazakhstan and then attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Uzbekistan.
• One month ahead of the 20^th Party Congress, where President Xi is expected to further consolidate power, the trip provided an opportunity for Xi to portray himself as a leader with strong foreign policy credentials in the midst of domestic economic uncertainty and wider global unrest.
• At the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, President Xi continued to project strength and sought to deepen economic partnerships within Central Asia.
• President Xi’s Central Asia trip offered further confirmation that China has replaced Russia as the major power broker in the region; dialogue between Xi and Putin revealed tensions over Russia’s war in Ukraine.