Expert Think Tank Forum “An Important Bridgehead for China’s Opening-up to the North” Held in Hohhot

On September 18, 2026, the “2026 Expert Think Tank Forum on an Important Bridgehead for China’s Opening-up to the North” was held in Hohhot, the administrative center of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China.

The international forum was organized by the People’s Government of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with the support of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and the Inner Mongolia Academy of Social Sciences.

More than 100 leaders, experts and scholars from Kazakhstan, Russia, Mongolia, Belarus, Uzbekistan and other countries, as well as representatives of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, academies of social sciences from other provinces and autonomous regions of China, universities and think tanks, participated in the forum.

The international expert forum was attended by Farida Orazakynkyzy, Head of the Department of Chinese Studies at the Faculty of Oriental Studies of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University,  who contributed to discussions on current issues of regional cooperation between China and Central Asian countries.

During the forum, participants exchanged views on promoting China’s opening-up policy in the northern direction, developing regional economic cooperation, strengthening cross-border ties, and the prospects for the development of the China–Mongolia–Russia Economic Corridor.

One of the key topics of the forum was the establishment of the China (Inner Mongolia) Pilot Free Trade Zone and its development into an important hub for international economic cooperation in the northern direction. Participants shared expert perspectives on these issues and put forward proposals aimed at further promoting academic research and practical cooperation.

The forum contributed to strengthening dialogue among experts on expanding China’s opening-up to the north, deepening international and regional cooperation, and enhancing interaction within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

At the conclusion of the event, participants expressed their readiness to further strengthen expert and academic ties, continue the exchange of views, and contribute to the development of economic, scientific and cultural cooperation between China and neighboring countries.