XIAMEN, Sept. 9 -- The 10th China-Central Asia Cooperation Forum opened Saturday in the eastern Chinese city of Xiamen, Fujian Province.

Shen Yueyue, vice chairperson of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, attended the opening ceremony and read out President Xi Jinping's congratulatory message to the forum before delivering a keynote speech.↳

Shen, also chairperson of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation Commission of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, said that relations between China and Central Asian countries have entered a new era under the strategic guidance of the heads of state, and the forum is a practical measure to implement the consensus reached by the leaders at the China-Central Asia Summit.↳

China and Central Asia countries need to comprehensively deepen political mutual trust, expand practical cooperation, jointly achieve high-quality development, continuously deepen people-to-people exchanges, develop close international coordination, and build an even closer China-Central Asia community with a shared future, Shen added.

More than 400 people, including leaders and government officials from Central Asian countries and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Secretary General, attended the forum. The Xiamen Initiative was released at the event.