(Reuters) – China said on Sunday it would launch 15 measures to boost development in its western provinces by building logistics infrastructure such as ports and air hubs.
The General Administration of Customs said the measures would improve the integration of rail, air, river and sea links in western China, state media reported.
The measures should include strengthening international air hubs in cities including Chengdu, Chongqing, Kunming, Xi’an and Urumqi, while developing comprehensive connected zones and integrating them with ports and other transport links.
A number of ports will be built and expanded.
China has long sought to strengthen the economic power of its western regions, which are extremely backward coastal provinces. But ethnic tensions in places like Xinjiang and tough security measures that Beijing says are needed to preserve national unity and border stability have drawn criticism from some Western countries.
China’s western regions account for about two-thirds of the country’s land area and include regions such as Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, Xinjiang and Tibet.
Last year, China’s Politburo called for a “new urbanization” of western China to revitalize rural areas, expand poverty reduction efforts and boost energy sources. Efforts have also been made to increase links with Europe and South Asia through trade corridors including rail freight routes.
