Central Asia's "New Era" – China's View on the Development of the Region

From May 18 to 19, 2023, the first Central Asia – China Summit was held in Xi’an (Shaanxi Province, China). Within the framework of the summit, the Xi’an Declaration was signed, which, according to the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping, became a “new era” for the development of relations between the People’s Republic of China and the states of the region. In the article, the authors consider: political aspects of signing the Xi’an Declaration; prospects for further economic expansion of the People’s Republic of China in the region; issues of ensuring security in the context of countering cross-border terrorism, etc. The authors pay special attention to the issue of the balance of power in the region within the framework of the clash of interests of two formally allied but competing states, the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China. The Central Asian region today seems to be a relevant object of research in the context of the current transformation of the architecture of the world order due to the concentration of interests of global actors in the region, as well as new challenges and threats caused by internal political instability in the region.