President Xi Jinping on Tuesday told the second China-Central Asia Summit that China is ready to work with Central Asian countries to safeguard international justice, and oppose hegemonism and power politics.

Speaking in the Kazakh capital of Astana, Xi said the nation and Central Asian countries have explored and formed what he called the "China-Central Asia Spirit", which features mutual respect, trust, benefit, assistance and the pursuit of common modernisation through high-quality development.

Xinhua News Agency also reported that Beijing will set up three cooperation centres and a trade facilitation platform within the cooperation mechanism.

These would include centres to tackle poverty, facilitate education exchanges and to address desertification.

Xi, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a treaty of permanent good-neighbourliness and friendly cooperation. (Additional reporting by Reuters)