China Boosts Media Campaign to Win Central Asia’s Trust

China has ramped up a coordinated media campaign across Central Asia, promoting Beijing as a benevolent neighbor and reliable economic partner.

Chinese embassies across the region have actively placed Beijing-produced content in major print, online, and broadcast outlets, The Caspian Post reports via foreign media.

In Kazakhstan, embassy statements stressed China’s “all-encompassing love” for good neighborly relations and “win-win” trade, while warning Central Asian countries against adopting a “Cold War mindset” - a phrase widely seen as a veiled criticism of closer ties with the West.

Similar messaging appeared in leading media in Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan, with Chinese diplomats giving interviews and publishing opinion pieces highlighting economic cooperation, scientific exchange, and shared development goals within the Global South.

Alongside the media push, a Chinese-backed organization sponsored public opinion polls across several Central Asian countries. Official analyses portrayed regional attitudes toward China as overwhelmingly positive. However, a closer look at the data suggests opinions are far more divided, with support and skepticism often running neck and neck - and many respondents choosing neutral answers in societies where open disagreement can carry social or political risks.

On the ground, China’s presence continues to expand unevenly across the region. Kazakhstan recorded a surge in cross-border travel with China and announced new Chinese-backed investments, even as talks on agricultural market access stalled. Kyrgyzstan boosted imports from China while cautiously expanding its own exports. Tajikistan saw renewed Chinese energy exploration but also the suspension of a major China-linked highway project. Uzbekistan strengthened its role as China’s top investment destination in Central Asia, signing new agreements in technology, education, mining, and energy.

Taken together, the developments highlight a complex picture: while Beijing is deepening its economic and media footprint across Central Asia, public sentiment appears more cautious and divided than China’s official narrative suggests - signaling that influence in the region is still being contested.