Xinjiang (Chinese: 新疆, Xīnjiāng) is an autonomous region in the
west of the People's Republic of China. Xinjiang (新疆) means "new
border" and is an autonomous province of the People's Republic of
China.
Xinjiang, still known to us by its old transliteration
Sinkiang, borders the Chinese provinces of Gansu, Qinghai and Tibet.
Other neighboring countries are India, Pakistan, Afghanistan,
Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia and Mongolia, although
the border in the Kashmir area is not undisputed. Since ancient
times, two caravan routes have run between the few oases, one
northern and one southern around the Takamaklan Desert, which Sven
Hedin called the "Silk Road".
Under various dynasties in
ancient times, the Chinese central power sometimes exercised more,
often less control over the region. Because of its remoteness, it
was always a place of exile. In the 1760s and again in 1870, the
Manchu dynasty used force to assert its claim against advancing
Russians and, above all, the Islamic steppe peoples.
After
the end of the Tsarist Empire, an estimated 200,000-300,000 (semi)
nomadic Kazakhs and Kirghiz remained in northern Xinjiang, which
came increasingly under Soviet influence during the turmoil of the
Chinese civil war from 1926 to 1944. Three warlords raged here in
those years. Around 67,000 descendants of the nomadic immigrants
returned to the Soviet Union in 1959/60. There is a diversity of
peoples in Dzungaria, there are many Kazakhs and Mongolians as well
as an increasing number of Han Chinese immigrants since the region
was planned to be developed in 1958 in order to use the discovered
raw material wealth for the industrializing China after liberation.
35 of China's recognized minorities live here. In various local
authorities assigned to a people ("autonomous county/district"), the
respective language and culture are promoted as part of the policy
known as Yōuhuì zhèngcè (优惠政策/優惠政策), which has been in effect since
1951. This is the case even though the protected people only make up
a small proportion of their territory. The southern Tarim region in
particular is the land of the Islamized Uighurs, who also make up
the majority of the population here. The word "Uighur" in its
current meaning is a term coined in 1921 at the Soviet Congress of
Minorities in Tashkent, which is based on the medieval Uighur
Empire. In feudal times, people generally spoke of "Turki" or
"Taranchi" for those who had immigrated to the Ili region. "Hui" are
also Muslims, but sinicized.
Ürümqi (乌鲁木齐), the capital of the region
Turfan, an oasis town on
the northern route of the Silk Road
Kashgar (喀什), an oasis town and
hub on the "Silk Road."
Kumul also known as Hami.
Yining
1 EPIA: equidistant 2648km to Baidarata Bay, Bay of Bengal and the
Gulf of Bohai. Accessible via an agricultural track that begins next to
an irrigation canal between the village of Yībāsì tuán sìlian (一八四团四𨓋
in the locality of Hoxtolgay (和什托洛盖镇) with a train stop) and crosses the
Urumqui Expressway S21 south of Fuhai. At the closest point you are less
than 600 meters from the point.
2 EPIA1: 2510 ± 10km from the mouth
of the Ob, the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. An expedition would
only be possible about 35km south of the highway at Jīnghé, but
unfortunately there are several mountains over 2600 meters high in the
way. It would not be much better from Yining to the south.
3 EPIA2:
equidistant 2514 ± 7km from the mouth of the Ob, the Bay of Bengal and
the Gulf of Bohai. In the Gurbantünggüt desert, this point can be
reached after almost 50km cross-country from National Road 216 with an
off-road vehicle and GPS (note the official government deviation).
Jiaohe (交河古城)
UNESCO World Heritage The ruins of Jiaohe are about
8 km west of Turfan. The ruins themselves are not very impressive, but
they give a good impression of what life must have been like in the
ancient desert cities.
Kares (坎儿井)
UNESCO World Heritage The
Kares is the historical irrigation system of Turfan. There is a museum
there.
Tuyoq (吐峪沟)
The village is a green oasis surrounded by
the Flame Mountains. The place is not yet well known, so you won't find
the usual tourist buses here. For the Uighur Muslims it is a place of
pilgrimage. Those who cannot afford a trip to Mecca can make seven trips
to Tuyoq instead to pray at the grave of the first Uighur Muslim; this
has the same effect as a trip to Mecca. Tourists who want to visit the
tomb have to pay an entrance fee. A visit here is worthwhile.
In
the mountainside to the east there are former Buddhist temple caves.
Karakorum Highway & Karakul Lake
The Karakorum Highway is part of
the former legendary Silk Road. You can get from Kashgar to Karakul Lake
(喀拉库勒湖) via this highway. The journey takes you through a beautiful
mountain landscape. On the way you come across grazing camels, yaks and
sheep. You can also see some smaller settlements with yurts in which the
Tajiks live.
Karakul Lake (= Karakol Lake) is located at an
altitude of 3600 meters at the foot of Mustak Ata. This lake is also
very touristy during the day. The men from the village, which is an
hour's walk on the other side of the lake, offer the opportunity to go
on short to medium-length tours on a horse or a camel.
The dried-up salt lake Lop Nor (大耳朵/罗布泊, Pinyin: Dàěrduǒ, renamed in 1971) is located at an altitude of 780m at the lowest point in the Tarim Basin. The Lop Nor nuclear weapons test site, which is probably better known in Europe, is about 250 km northwest of the salt lake.
In the autonomous province of Xinjiang, the Uighurs make up the majority of the population in the south. Although you are in China, you won't get very far with standard Chinese. Most Uighurs can speak Chinese, the others don't want to. This means that the main language in southern Xinjiang is Uighur. A few words will help to break the ice immediately.
The routes are long and often lead through desert-like, uninhabited
areas. If you are traveling away from the highways, an average speed of
40 km/h is normal. After 2000, massive investments were made in the
infrastructure and many transport routes were greatly improved.
Within the country, you can fly to Urumqi from almost anywhere. You can
also travel through the province itself by plane.
There is now a
high-speed train from Beijing that only takes 18 hours. Otherwise, you
can also travel cheaply by bus or hire a taxi to certain places.
By road
The "mother of all roads" G31, which connects Korgas with
Shanghai across China, runs east-west through the north of the region,
and the G30 motorway is largely built parallel to it.
Around the
Takamaklan, the northern route from Korla (Bayingolin) via Aksu, Kashgar
to Khotan is built as national road 314 and parallel to it as G3012,
which is also motorway-like. South of Korla, national road 315 goes
around the desert to the south as far as Khotan.
Pakistan: Travel
to Pakistan is possible from June to November on the Karakorum Highway.
It is important to have your travel documents and visa ready beforehand,
otherwise you will not be allowed out of China.
There are land
border crossings with Kazakhstan in Korgas, Tacheng and Alashankou,
which can be reached by public transport. The two pass roads with
Kyrgyzstan are more remote. The border post at the Kulma Pass with
Tajikistan at 4362 m, which is only open for a very limited time, cannot
be reached without your own vehicle (or an expensive taxi from Kashgar).
By train
There is a train connection from Ürümqi to Kashgar, but
the journey takes around 24 hours. Since 2022 it has been possible to
travel around the Takamaklan Desert completely by train. The train
journeys totaling 2700 km stop at 22 stations. The more important ones
are (clockwise): (Ürümgi - Turfan - ) Korla (Bayingolin) - Ruoquaiang
(km 450; Golmud junction) - Khotan (km 1361) - Kashgar (km 1819) - Aksu
(km 2284) - Korla.
Nan - a special specialty. Delicious round breads freshly prepared in
stone ovens. They differ from the Indian variety in their greater
firmness and variety of spices.
Samsas - thicker baked dumplings
filled with mutton.
Laghman - hand-pulled noodles served with a
mixture of peppers, mutton, tomatoes, eggplant and lots of fresh garlic.
In terms of thickness, they resemble Japanese udon.
Kebab - made
from mutton with a mandatory lot of fat, you can get it anywhere.
The nightlife in Urumqi, Turfan and Kashgar takes place at the night markets. Regional culinary specialties are offered there. People eat together and chat.
The people in Xinjiang are very friendly. Driving by car and bus, on the other hand, is dangerous. There is no obligation to wear seat belts and it seems as if there are no traffic rules. Taxi drivers in particular have a very fast and risky driving style. It has already happened that tourists travelling alone have been sexually harassed. In any case, women should make sure to wear clothing appropriate for a Muslim country (covered arms and legs).
The climate is characterized by continental high mountains with short, hot summers. There is regular rainfall in the large mountains. Even in July and August, the nights are cool in the western highlands. The Tarim Basin has a desert climate. June to September are good months for travel. From December to February, the daily maximum temperatures rarely reach more than -10 °C.
As there is only one time zone in China, namely "Beijing time" (UTC
+8), which differs from local conditions by around 2¼ hours, sunrise in
January is around 9:45 a.m. and sunset around 6:45 p.m. For September
and March it is 8:00 a.m./7:45 p.m. respectively, and in June 6:45
a.m./9:45 p.m.
Especially in the border regions, "Kazakhstan
time" (UTC +6) is used in everyday life. It should be noted that all
official time information, such as train timetables, works according to
Beijing time.
Xinjiang is located in northwestern China and borders the neighboring
countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan,
Kazakhstan, Russia and Mongolia, with which there are various border
crossings. The border with India and Pakistan is in the disputed region
of Kashmir. Within China, Xinjiang borders the provinces of Gansu and
Qinghai as well as the Tibet Autonomous Region. With an area of around
1.6 million square kilometers, the region covers one sixth of China's
total area, making it the country's largest administrative unit in terms
of area.
Physiologically, Xinjiang essentially consists of three
large basins, which are bordered by several large mountain ranges. In
the north and northeast lie the Altai Mountains, which are over 4,000
meters high and cover an area of around 94,000 km², and form the
natural border with Mongolia and Russia. To the south of this lies the
158,000 km² large Dzungarian Basin or Dzungaria, on whose southern edge
lies the state capital Ürümqi. The landscape here is characterized by
vast treeless grasslands, which further north merge into the
Gurbantünggüt Desert. The southern border of Dzungaria is formed by the
479,000 km² Tianshan, the "Heavenly Mountains" (since a UNESCO World
Heritage Site), a mountain range stretching over 2000 kilometers
east-west into Central Asia, reaching heights of over 7000 meters. In
the eastern section, south of the Tianshan, is the Turpan Depression,
the lowest point of which is 155 meters below sea level, making it the
lowest point in China and one of the lowest points on earth. A
characteristic oasis culture has developed here thanks to sophisticated
irrigation systems that have existed and been maintained since ancient
times.
South of the Tianshan lies the 527,000 km² Tarim Basin,
the central and largest part of which is occupied by the Taklamakan sand
desert (literally "sea of death"). At the deepest point of the Tarim
Basin there was once the Lop Nor salt lake with no outlet, which dried
up in 1961 or 1962 due to excessive water use and the drying up of its
tributaries Tarim and Konqi, and has turned into a large salt pan. In
the southwest, the Tarim Basin is bordered by the Pamir and Karakorum
high mountains. In the latter, on the border with Pakistan, you will
find K2 (in Chinese Qogir), the second highest mountain in the world at
8,611 meters. In the south and southeast, the Kunlun and Altun mountains
form the southern border of the Tarim Basin and mark the transition to
the Tibetan highlands.
Xinjiang is a largely drainless region.
The rivers fed by meltwater from snow-capped mountains and glaciers seep
away in the deserts or flow into drainless, i.e. salt lakes. An
exception is the Ertix, which rises in the Mongolian Altai and flows
west to Kazakhstan as the "Black Irtysh", flows into Lake Saissan there
and later forms the upper reaches of the Ob. Lake Bosten is the largest
standing (freshwater) body of water in Xinjiang.
The region is
considered to be at risk of earthquakes. In February 2003, the area was
shaken by violent earthquakes measuring up to 6.8 on the Richter scale.
At least 261 people lost their lives and around 10,000 houses were
destroyed. Due to the remoteness of the region and the restrictive
information policy of the Chinese authorities, little information about
such disasters usually reaches the outside world.
Xinjiang is the region on earth furthest from the sea and the climate is therefore extremely continental. The temperature differences between day and night are large. The sunshine duration is long, precipitation is low and evaporation is considerable. The annual average temperature is between −4 and +8 °C in the north and between +7 and +14 °C in the south. The frost-free period is 120 to 180 days in the north and 180 to 240 days in the south. Precipitation is low and is 120 mm per year. In the Taklamakan and Turpan Basin, less than 25 mm is reached. Only in the western Tianshan is the climate wetter with annual precipitation of up to 500 mm. The Tianshan forms a certain climatic boundary: to the north of it, the climate is less dry and cooler than to the south.
The history of East Turkestan (Kashgar, Xinjiang - Chinese: 新疆) - territories annexed to China in the 18th century - is extremely rich. Xinjiang consists of two very different natural regions - the Tarim Basin and the Dzungarian Plain. The oases of the Tarim Basin have long been small agricultural states that benefited from the trade routes passing through them, and the steppes of Dzungaria were inhabited by nomadic cattle breeders. Their relationships determined many features of the history of Xinjiang.
The presence of Eneolithic ceramics in the region (dated to the 6th
millennium BC) indicates close ties with Central Asia and the Middle
East.
In the Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC), the Aryan cattle
breeding tribes of the Afanasevo culture penetrated the region from the
west. They buried their ancestors in burial mounds (see Tarim mummies,
Cherchen man). Their descendants became known to ancient authors as the
Tocharians, and to the Chinese as the Yuezhi. They built the cities of
Kashgar, Turpan, and Khotan. To the east of the Tocharians (in Gansu)
lived the Wusuns.
The Chemurchek culture is a megalithic
archaeological culture of the Early Bronze Age (2600–1700 BC), common in
the territory of the Mongolian Altai and Dzungaria. Skeletons of horses
from the Shizhenzigou and Xigou necropolises (350 BC) were found to have
bone changes in the spine and dental anomalies, indicating horseback
riding.
In the 2nd century BC, the Tokhars were partially conquered and
partially driven into Central Asia by the Xiongnu armies that came from
the east under the leadership of Mode. In the 1st century BC, the
Xiongnu rulers founded the military colony of Gaochang in the Turpan
Basin, 30 km from modern Gaochang. Several decades later, the onslaught
of the Huns was repelled, and the Tokhars helped the Chinese open the
Great Silk Road. By the 1st century BC, the Tokhars had adopted
Buddhism.
During the Xiongnu-Chinese wars, the government of the
Chinese Han Empire established a garrison in Wulei, in the northeast of
Bugur, with the aim of protecting the Tokharian principalities allied
with the Chinese from the raids of the Xiongnu nomads. It is believed
that this was China's first attempt to gain a foothold in Central Asia.
Tocharian languages survived in the oases of East Turkestan until
the 8th century.
At the end of the 1st century, Ban Chao conquered the territory of modern Xinjiang and annexed it to the Chinese Han Empire. The empire created administrative structures to govern the region, which continued to function under the successor states after the collapse of the Han Empire.
In 93, in the Battle of Ikh-Bayan, a coalition of Han, Xianbei, Dinglings and Cheshis defeated the Xiongnu, after which the Xianbei began to occupy Xiongnu lands, and some of the Huns joined the Xianbei. In the middle of the 2nd century, the leader Tanshihuai united the Xianbei Mongols, and in 155 he dealt such a blow to the Xiongnu that the Xiongnu ethnic group split into four branches. The former Xiongnu lands in Xinjiang came under the control of the Xianbei. In the middle of the 3rd century, the Xianbei state disintegrated.
In 234, the Xianbei Empire was divided into several parts, but the Nirun Mongols (Rouran Khaganate) occupied almost the entire territory of the Xianbei Empire, and the Xianbei-speaking Tobas captured the territory up to the Chinese Yangtze River. The western border of the Rouran Khaganate extended to Lake Balkhash and the Hephthalites became vassals of the Rouran.
The Turkic Khaganate extended its power over the vast territories of
the Great Steppe from Europe to China. It was during this period that
the process of Turkification of Xinjiang began. In 603, the Turkic
Khaganate split into western and eastern parts (Eastern Turkic
Khaganate), which for a long time predetermined the historical name of
the region - East Turkestan.
However, the invasion of Turkic
tribes did not stop the development of local cultural traditions. In the
6th century, construction of the Thousand Buddha Cave Temples began in
the vicinity of Turfan.
In the middle of the 7th century, the territory of Xinjiang became part of the Chinese Tang Empire, and remained under its control until the middle of the 8th century, when the An Lushan rebellion led to the need to recall troops from remote garrisons to central China.
In 745, the Uyghur Khaganate was formed, with its center in what is
now Mongolia. By the middle of the 9th century, it began to weaken. In
840, the Khaganate was attacked by the Yenisei Kyrgyz and was defeated.
The Uyghurs fled to the south, southwest, and west. Those who moved to
the southwest created the Uyghur Kiansu (Ganzhou) state in what is now
the Chinese province of Gansu. Those who moved to the west founded the
famous Uyghur Buddhist state (the Uyghur state of the Idikuts), which
lasted for almost 500 years. The capitals of this country were the
cities of Kocho (Turpan) and Beshbalik. In addition, the local sedentary
Uyghurs, around the same time, together with other Turkic peoples,
created the vast state of the Karakhanid, with its capital in Kashgar.
Thus, having established one of the Turkic-speaking tribal unions in the
Tarim Basin and Dzungaria at the end of the 1st millennium, the Uyghurs
became the main population of the region.
After the Khitan Liao
Empire, located in northern China, fell at the beginning of the 12th
century, some of the Khitans went west and, having defeated the
Karakhanids, formed the state of Western Liao on their former territory.
At the beginning of the 12th century, Khotan fell prey to the
Kara-Khitan Khanate, which was conquered by Genghis Khan in 1218 and
became part of the Mongol Empire. Genghis Khan took control of Eastern
Turkestan quickly and almost without resistance from the local
population. After the empire was divided between the heirs of Genghis
Khan, Eastern Turkestan almost entirely fell into the ulus of his second
son, Chagatai. That is why the Old Uyghur language is called Chagatai.
Only the eastern part of the country - Turpan and Kumul (the Uyghur
state of the Idikuts) became part of the ulus of Ogedei, the third son
of Genghis Khan, proclaimed the Great Khan. At the beginning of the 14th
century, the rulers of the Chagatai ulus adopted Islam, and in the
middle of the 14th century, the Mogul state (Mogholistan) emerged from
it, covering the territory of Uyghuria. The word "Moghul" is not an
ethnic descendant of the word "Mongol", but rather a dynastic successor.
That is, the main population of Moghulistan was Turkic-speaking, or more
precisely, they were Uighurs, but their rulers considered themselves
descendants of the Mongol khans. The city of Beshbalik, which had once
been the capital of the Uighur state of the Idiquts, was proclaimed the
capital of Moghulistan.
In the 14th century, the Oirats migrated
to the south and in 1399 created the Oirat Khanate. Having lost the
northern part of Xinjiang for a time, the Uighurs nevertheless regained
the east of the country, namely Turfan and Kumul, which were then
Islamized. "The eldest son of Ahmed, Mansur, after the death of his
father, was recognized as the ruler of Uighuria, in Turfan, in
Karashahar and in Kucha."
In the 16th century, Uyghuria acquired
a new name: Mamlakat-i Moghuliya (State of Moghulia). The city of
Yarkand was proclaimed the capital of this state. The Buddhist Oirats
were the mortal enemies of the Muslim Moghulist khans.
During the
16th century, the strengthening of the Mongol tribes led to the
weakening of the Oirat Khanate, but at the beginning of the 17th century
it was revived under the name of the Dzungar Khanate - the last nomadic
empire of Eurasia. A feature of the Uyghur state in the 16th-17th
centuries is that the political life of the country was largely
determined by the activities of the khojas. Two Islamic sects of khojas
- "Belogortsy" and "Chernogortsy" - competed with each other for
influence in Uyghuria for two centuries. At the end of the 17th century,
the leader of the Belogortsy - Appak Khoja - came to power. However, the
ongoing squabbles created favorable conditions for the entire territory
of Uyghuria to fall under the influence of the Dzungars. In the north of
Uyghuria there was a fairly strong Dzungar Khanate, in the south of
Uyghuria there was the Uyghur state of Mogolia, which fell into
dependence on the Dzungars. In the 1670s, the Dzungars took over not
only Turpan and Hami, but also all the other cities of Eastern
Turkestan.
In the 17th century, the Chinese Ming Empire was conquered by the
Manchus, who established the Qing Empire. At the end of the 17th
century, wars began between the Manchus and the Dzungars for hegemony in
the steppes of East Asia. In the middle of the 18th century, the Dzungar
Khanate was completely defeated, and its territory was captured by the
Qing Empire.
As for the southern part of Xinjiang, its fate was
predetermined due to internecine conflicts, skillfully used by the
conquerors. Due to the fact that almost the entire Oirat (Dzungar)
population was destroyed or fled, the resistance forces throughout
Xinjiang were led by the descendants of the famous Uyghur religious
authority - the leader of the White Mountain sect - Appak Khoja - the
brothers Burhaneddin and Khoja Jihan. However, already at the initial
stage of the struggle, they were opposed by the Montenegrins led by
Yahya Khoja.
Brothers Burhaneddin and Khoja Jihan managed to
defeat their political opponents, but they failed to fully unite the
population of Uyghuria in the face of external danger. Even during the
beginning of the occupation of Xinjiang by Manchu troops, brothers
Burhaneddin and Khoja Jihan provided all possible assistance to the
Oirats, although their homeland was dependent on the Oirats. However,
the brothers understood that the Manchu occupation was a phenomenon many
times more terrible and dangerous than the Oirat influence. In 1758,
Khoja Jihan declared himself the ruler of Uyghuria under the name of
Batur Khan. In general, he managed to control the situation, although in
some cities there were still his political opponents from among the
Uyghurs, who then later went over to the side of the Chinese. Advancing
to the south of Uyghuria, Manchu troops "... captured the cities of
Kucha, Shayar and Sairam.
In Aksu and Uch-Turfan, local beks
opposed Burhaneddin and Khoja Jihan, surrendering these cities to Zhao
Hui…” By the end of August 1759, Yarkand was taken (the beks betrayed
Burhaneddin). Around the same time, Kashgar fell.
Thus, the
attempt of the brothers Burhaneddin and Khoja Jihan to defend the
independence of Uyghuria was unsuccessful. The main reasons for the
defeat were the lack of unity among the Uyghur leaders.
As a
result of the conquest of Dzungaria and East Turkestan by the Manchu
feudal lords, both regions actually turned into colonies of the Qing
Empire and in 1760 were artificially reduced to a special
military-administrative unit - the imperial viceroyalty of Xinjiang (New
Border, or New Territory).
Already in the year of the formation
of the viceroyalty, that is, in 1760, a major uprising occurred in
Kashgar. Five years later, the inhabitants of Uch-Turfan, in the south
of Uyghuria, waged an armed struggle for several months. The uprising
was led by Rakhmatullah. Having suppressed these uprisings of the Uyghur
people, the Manchu-Chinese occupation authorities forcibly resettled
part of the Uyghur population from the south to the north of Uyghuria.
This action had a dual purpose. Firstly, it was necessary to defuse the
situation somewhat, and therefore this kind of resettlement was, in a
sense, an exile for the most active freedom fighters. Secondly, having
destroyed more than a million Oirats, the Manchu-Chinese government
hoped to maintain an occupation army in the north of Uyghuria by using
the labor of the Uyghurs. It was at that time that the Uyghur settlers
were called by the Manchu word "taranchi", which means - plowman.
The Uyghur uprisings for independence were constant. There were
about 400 of them during the 18th-20th centuries. It is interesting that
the struggle for freedom was led by both the representatives of the
"White Mountain" sect and the representatives of the "Montenegrin" sect.
As for the large, so-called "Khoja rebellions", in the 19th century they
broke out in 1814 led by Tilla-kari, in 1816 led by Ziyautdin, in 1818
led by Jahangir-Khoja, who in 1826-1828 led the struggle for the second
time (the Jangir-Khoja Rebellion), managed to organize resistance
forces. Having captured important strategic points in the south of
Uyghuria, such as Kashgar, Yarkand, Khotan, Yangigisar, Jahangir-Khoja
tried to attack, though unsuccessfully, Aksu, Karashar, Kuchar,
Uch-Turfan. Having suffered defeat in the decisive battle, Jahangir
Khoja was captured, taken to Beijing and executed. As researchers note,
"according to Wei Yuan, the Manchu punitive forces dealt with the Uyghur
rebels with unusual cruelty. Thus, he writes, "There was no counting how
many enemies were killed, 4,000 were captured alive." However, the
significance of the Jahangir Khoja uprising is enormous. As Ch.
Valikhanov writes, "After the Jangir uprising, the weakness of the
Chinese, who until then had seemed invincible to the Asians, was
revealed. The Kashgar patriots revived their spirit and received a new
and strong hope for the return of the independence of their Fatherland."
Two years later, in 1830, Jahangir Khoja's brother, Yusuf Khoja,
organized a new movement and headed from the territory of Kokand to
Uyghuria. He managed to liberate Kashgar and Yangigisar. However, Yusuf
Khoja was later forced to return to Kokand. After 17 years, in In 1847,
the famous Uyghur activist Valikhan Tura also managed to liberate
Kashgar and Yangigisar, but was unable to launch an offensive.
After the signing of the Treaty of Kuldja between Russia and the Qing
Empire in July 1851, relations between the two countries improved
significantly, but this did not affect the fate of the Uyghur people.
Continuing to experience oppression, the Uyghur Khojas again tried to
seize Kashgar in 1855... During 1856-1857, actions were also taken in
this direction.
In the summer of 1864, the inhabitants of Kuchar, which is located in
the very center of Uyguria, rebelled. In the south of the country,
unrest occurred in Kashgar, Yarkand, and Khotan. The uprising spread to
the north, where the uprising began in the Ili region, and thus covered
almost the entire Xinjiang. However, strife and internecine strife,
misunderstanding of common goals negated the successes of the rebels. At
the initial stage of the uprising, in 1864, the ruler of Kuchar, the
"Montenegrin" Rashiddin, was recognized as the leader of the movement.
Having assumed the title of Khan Khoja, he immediately took steps to
expand the base of the uprising. In many ways, he succeeded. However, in
1866, with the arrival of Buzruk-khoja, a "White mountaineer" from exile
in Kashgar, civil strife resumed. At the same time, in 1866, Alakhan
declared himself ruler of the Ili Region, taking the title of sultan. As
a result, Uighuria was split into small formations.
Five states
were created: the Kuchar Khanate, the Kashgar Khanate, the Khotan
Islamic State, the Urumqi Sultanate, and the Ili Sultanate. Uighur
politicians understood the need to unite the country, but they could not
come to an agreement due to personal ambitions. The leader of the
uprising in Kuchar, Rashiddin Khoja (Khan Khoja), was not recognized by
Kashgar figures, and the ruler of Kashgar, Buzruk Khoja, did not enjoy
authority among the leaders of other parts of Uighuria. Yakub bey, one
of the military leaders from Kashgar, who had arrived earlier from
Kokand, assumed the role of unifier of the nation and the country.
Having carried out measures to strengthen the army, with its help he
managed to eliminate the intractable Hodges and unite the country. All
state entities on the territory of Uyguria became part of the state of
Yakub bek. This state was proclaimed in 1865 and was called Yettishar
(the state of Seven Cities). For the period of its existence, Uygur was
actually an independent state for 13 years. In 1870, Yakub bey managed
to annex the Sultanate of Urumqi to the state of Yettishar.
As
for the Ili (Taranchinsky) Sultanate, in 1871 it was occupied by the
troops of the Russian Empire. Military clashes between the Uighurs and
Russians began in 1870. "The reason for the outbreak of hostilities was
an attempt by Kazakhs from the Kyzai clan to migrate to Kuldzha at the
end of 1870. The flight of the provincial governor of the Kyzaevites,
Ensign Tazabek, to Kuldzha in April 1871 and the refusal of the Ili
Sultanate to extradite him at the appointed time forced General
Kolpakovsky to strengthen the border detachments and send a special
detachment." After occupying the Ili Region of Xinjiang, Russian troops
stayed there for ten years.
Meanwhile, the state of Yettishar
unsuccessfully tried to gain recognition of its independence. Yakub
Beg's policy was based on maneuvering between the powerful neighbors of
the Uighur state — three empires: the Russian, British and Qing.
However, neither Russia nor Britain recognized the independence of the
state of Yettishar. The Qing Empire, meanwhile, rejected even Yakub
Bey's offer of autonomy and took large-scale military action. In 1877,
Yakub beg was poisoned, and Uighuria was reoccupied by the Qing Empire.
Mass arrests and executions were carried out among civilians. The
commander of the Chinese troops, General Zuo Zongtang, went down in
history as the executioner of the Uighur people. According to the
Livadia Treaty of 1879, the Ili region was returned by Russia to the
Qing Empire, and in 1881-1883, Russian troops were withdrawn from this
northwestern part of Xinjiang. In 1884, the Qing administration renamed
Uyguria into Xinjiang again, with Urumqi as its administrative center.
On the night of January 7-8, 1912, a rebellion of garrison units
began in Kuldja. On May 7, 1912, members of the secret "Society of Elder
Brothers" rebelled in Kashgar, they managed to kill the governor and a
number of officials, and the troops went over to their side. Russian and
British troops were brought into Kuldja and Kashgar to protect the
consulates.
After the 1911-1912 revolution in China, the Uyghurs
rebelled in Kargalyk, Yarkand, and Khotan. Serious uprisings took place
in Kumul in 1912-1913. The uprising was led by Timur Khalpa. However, it
was soon liquidated, and Timur Khalpa and Mukhitdin (the leader of the
rebel residents of the city of Turpan, who intended to join the Kumuls)
were killed. The new Chinese governor, Yang Zengxin, managed to suppress
all the uprisings (including those of his former revolutionary comrades)
and bring Xinjiang under his control. During the events that took place
in Xinjiang in April 1912, a Russian military detachment "in the form of
a reinforced consular convoy" (two hundred Cossacks) was sent to Kuldja
to ensure the safety of Russian trade caravans and Russian citizens; in
June 1912, a Russian detachment of three hundred Cossacks and two
infantry companies also arrived in Kashgar. In 1913-1914, foreign
detachments were withdrawn from Kuldja and Kashgar. Although World War I
bypassed Xinjiang, its consequences in the region were very significant.
In 1916, a stream of refugees from Russian Turkestan poured into the
Xinjiang Uprising after the suppression of the Central Asian Uprising.
After the defeat of the White movement, numerous White Guards fled to
Xinjiang.
In the interwar period, the USSR exerted a huge
influence on Xinjiang. This was largely due to the fact that Xinjiang's
foreign trade was largely oriented toward Russia. Already in 1920, the
Xinjiang authorities, headed by Yang Zengxin, with the consent of the
Beijing authorities, invited the Soviet trade and diplomatic mission to
Kuldja for negotiations, during which, on May 27, 1920, the bilateral
Ili Agreement was concluded, which provided for the establishment of a
Soviet agency in Kuldja for trade issues, and also regulated trade
between the XUAR and Soviet Russia.
This agreement established
that bilateral trade would be carried out via the only road passing
through Khorgos and abolished the right of extraterritoriality of
Russian subjects in the territory of the Ili District. In the early
1920s, the Soviet authorities, having introduced troops into Chinese
territory with the consent of the Xinjiang authorities, managed to
effectively eliminate the White Guard hotbed in Xinjiang. The White
leaders in the region (A. I. Dutov, B. V. Annenkov and N. A. Denisov)
died. A significant portion of the White Army soldiers returned to
Soviet Russia under an amnesty. A very significant caravan trade was
established between Xinjiang and the USSR. In the 1920s, Xinjiang
supplied the USSR with leather, wool, furs, raw silk, cotton, tea,
tobacco, horses, cattle, and dried fruits, while sugar, matches,
petroleum products, cotton fabrics, threads, iron and cast iron
products, dishes, etc. were exported from the USSR to Xinjiang. By 1926,
bilateral trade turnover had reached the level of 1913, and in 1929 it
exceeded it by 63.2%.
In the 1930s, Xinjiang effectively switched
to subsidies from the USSR. In August 1933, at a meeting of the
Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party
(Bolsheviks), a resolution was adopted on measures to develop the
Xinjiang economy. Xinjiang received a loan of 5 million gold rubles at
4% per annum, to be repaid with deliveries of goods - gold, tin, furs,
wool, etc. On July 17, 1935, a Soviet-Xinjiang treaty was signed in
Urumqi, according to which transport vehicles were delivered to the
region from the USSR. Another treaty (dated July 16, 1935) provided for
the allocation of financing for road construction in the amount of
2,400,316 gold rubles. In 1935 alone, Soviet specialists built a number
of roads in Xinjiang: Urumqi - Khoros, Urumqi-Zaisan, Urumqi - Bakhty,
Urumqi - Hami. Soviet aid to Xinjiang in the 1930s was provided in a
comprehensive manner. Under the 1935 agreement, the region received the
machinery, inventory, seeds, and breeding cattle necessary for the
restoration of agriculture. Laboratories and zootechnical centers were
also equipped, and Soviet specialists were sent there. In the 1930s,
Soviet specialists built a number of industrial facilities in various
cities of the region. According to historian V. G. Shmatov, in the
mid-1930s, the USSR essentially monopolized Xinjiang's foreign trade.
Soviet-Xinjiang trade turnover grew rapidly. In 1929, it amounted to
13.8 million rubles, and in 1936, it was already 26.3 million rubles.
Even the local currency rate was supported by the Soviet Union. Local
Chinese authorities repeatedly raised the issue of Xinjiang joining the
USSR.
The influence of the USSR in the region was especially
strengthened after the Soviet Union helped suppress the Uyghur rebellion
of the early 1930s. A major Uyghur uprising began in 1931. It also began
in the east of Uyghuria, in the city of Kumul. The leaders of the
uprising were Khoja Niyaz Khazhi and Yulbars Khan. This uprising of the
Kumul Uyghurs spread in a chain reaction to other areas of Uyghuria. In
Turfan, the movement was led by the merchant Maksudahun Mukhitov (a
prominent Uyghur national figure) and his two brothers. The Uyghurs were
joined in the north of the Altai District by the Kazakhs led by Sharif
Khan, in the south by the Karashar Mongols with the young prince
Mahavan, as well as the Dungans (Huizu) and the Kyrgyz. The uprising
quickly gained momentum and developed quite successfully. United by
their common hatred of the ruling regime, the non-Chinese peoples of
Uyghuria supported each other and acted quite unitedly. By the spring of
1933, the Uyghur rebels, who constituted the main and leading force of
the national movement, as well as rebels of other nationalities
(Kazakhs, Mongols, Dungans, Kyrgyz) already controlled about 90% of the
territory.
In April 1933, as a result of a military coup, Colonel
Sheng Shicai came to power in Xinjiang, who promoted himself to general
(later he became a colonel general) and proclaimed himself governor.
Trying to reduce the intensity of the national liberation movement of
the peoples of Uyghuria, he published a program, the essence of which
was the promise of a number of political and economic freedoms.
In the summer of 1933, the Uyghur leader Hoja Niyaz Khazhi and Sheng
Shicai reached an agreement on the actual adoption of this program. The
Soviet Union played a huge role in this, putting open pressure on the
Uyghur leaders. However, there were those who managed to resist such an
end to the uprising. In particular, the leaders of the south of
Uyghuria, namely Hotan and Kashgar, did not agree with the previously
proposed scenario.
In the summer of 1933, Sabit Damulla and
Muhammad Imin Bughra announced the creation of an independent East
Turkestan Islamic Republic (initially, it was supposed to call the state
the Islamic Republic of Uyghuria, but taking into account the national
groups of Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Uzbeks and Tatars living in Uyghuria, they
decided to change the name of the state). On November 12, 1933, the
Program, Declaration, and Constitution of the republic were officially
published in the city of Kashgar. Hoja Niyaz Khaji was declared the
president of the country in absentia, and Sabit Damulla was declared the
prime minister (this step was intended to demonstrate the unity of all
Uyghur leaders, and therefore the unity of the territory of Uyghuria).
The National Assembly was convened, the Constitution was adopted, a
state symbol appeared - a flag (a white crescent with a star on a light
blue background) and a national currency. In October 1933, Sheng Shicai
visited Moscow to resolve economic and military issues. During his
return visit in December 1934, he was accompanied by the Soviet Consul
General G. A. Apresov. In January 1934, Sheng Shicai contacted Apresov
and achieved direct Soviet military support. To help Sheng Shicai, the
Soviet Union, which did not want either the strengthening of Japan or
the creation of a Muslim state on its doorstep, sent the so-called Altai
Volunteer Army, formed from Red Army soldiers (servicemen of the 13th
Alma-Ata OGPU regiment, dressed in White Guard uniforms, as well as the
10th Tashkent OGPU regiment). On the instructions of the Xinjiang
governor, the White Guard Colonel Baron Pavel Papengut formed one
cavalry and two infantry regiments, which became the most combat-ready
units of Sheng Shicai's army. The incredible happened - yesterday's
enemies fought in the same formation. OGPU agents freely operated on the
territory of East Turkestan. Later, Xinjiang would be "supervised" by
the Deputy People's Commissar of the People's Commissariat of Foreign
Affairs, General of State Security Vladimir Dekanozov. The Altai
Volunteer Army had its own artillery and aviation, as well as machine
guns. Meanwhile, the Dungans led by Ma Zhuyin occupied Kashgar, in one
day his men massacred about 2 thousand local residents, and a little
later shot 1,500 captured Chinese soldiers. During an attempt to capture
Urumqi, Soviet air force bombing led to Ma Zhuyin's troops being
scattered. His rebellion was finally suppressed in 1935.
The East
Turkestan Republic was abolished. Prime Minister Sabit Damulla and some
ministers were arrested, taken to Urumqi, where they were killed. Some
leaders, such as Muhammad Imin Bughra and Mahmut Mukhiti, emigrated to
India. Later, Kashgar was captured by the troops of Khoja Niyaz, but
there was no longer talk of restoring the Islamic republic. The Altai
Volunteer Army returned to the Union, although some remained as
instructors. Khoja Niyaz was appointed deputy governor. He was also
repressed later.
In 1937, a new Uyghur uprising began. Having
liberated Kashgar, the rebels moved towards Urumqi. The decisive battle
took place in the area of the cities of Korla and Karashar. The
combined Chinese-Soviet forces defeated the rebels. After the
suppression of the uprising, the Soviet contingent of NKVD troops
remained in the region with headquarters in Kumul. This was followed by
large-scale repressions throughout Uyghuria. However, the local
population did not stop fighting. The Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and Mongols in
the Ili Territory showed particularly stubborn resistance. With the
joint efforts of Soviet military units (Naryn and Osh military groups)
and Sheng Shicai's units, the rebellion of the Uyghurs and Dungans was
suppressed. Brigade Commander Nikolai Noreiko reported: "By December 5,
5,612 people from the 36th Dungan Division were killed and captured,
1,887 of those captured were liquidated. 20 guns, 1 mortar, and more
than 7,000 rifles were captured. About 8,000 people from the 6th Uyghur
Division were killed and captured, 607 of those captured were
liquidated." Later, the number of "liquidated" people increased. In
addition, soon after the suppression of the uprising, the USSR received
a concession from Sheng Shicai to develop oil, tin, and tungsten
deposits in the region, as well as a trade agreement on extremely
favorable terms for the USSR; Soviet geologists also arrived in
Xinjiang, and in 1940 this agreement was expanded and extended for 50
years. Xinjiang was subordinate to the Chinese government of Chiang
Kai-shek only nominally, had its own currency, and what is noteworthy,
its stability was ensured by the State Bank of the USSR. As for the
White Guards, some of them died in battle, some were recruited by Soviet
intelligence or went over to the service of Sheng Shicai. Later, the
Russian division formed from them, contrary to the recommendations of
the USSR, was disbanded, Pappengut was accused of conspiracy and shot.
More than 40 White officers were executed along with him. Sheng Shicai,
while on a visit to Moscow, asked him for permission to join the
All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks). In 1938, he was given party card
No. 1859118 by the Deputy Chief of the Red Army Intelligence
Directorate.
Sheng Shicai's loyalty was highly valued by Moscow.
His requests for supplies of weapons, ammunition, and food were fully
satisfied. The real reason for Soviet support for Sheng Shicai was
strategic interests. By this time, large reserves of uranium, tungsten,
antimony, tin, nickel, and tantalum had been discovered in Xinjiang.
The Sino-Japanese War that began in 1937 turned Xinjiang into a
territory through which the bulk of military cargo was transited to
China. This circumstance strengthened the Soviet presence in the region.
The Sary-Ozek-Urumqi-Lanzhou road was built through Xinjiang under the
supervision of Soviet specialists. In order to supply it with fuel, an
agreement was concluded in 1938 between the authorities of the USSR,
China, and Xinjiang Province on the construction of an oil refinery in
Tushanzi, which began operating in 1939 (after Soviet geologists were
convinced of the presence of oil in this area). The plant operated until
1942, after which it was dismantled and its equipment was taken to the
USSR. In the spring of 1939, the Soviet-Chinese airline "Khamiata"
(Chinese-Soviet Mixed Xinjiang Aviation Joint-Stock Limited Liability
Company) was created, which served flights from Alma-Ata to Lanzhou and
others. For its work, in 1941, Soviet specialists created a
meteorological service in Xinjiang. At the request of the Chinese
ambassador, an aircraft assembly plant was built in Xinjiang. This
enterprise was located 40 km from Urumqi and was supposed to assemble
I-16 aircraft from Soviet parts (up to 300 units per year, in 1941 this
model was taken out of production). The enterprise was mixed, and its
partial operation began on October 1, 1940. An NKVD battalion was used
to guard the plant.
With the beginning of World War II, the
orientation of the governor, Chinese General Sheng Shicai, changed. By
defecting to the Chinese nationalists, supporters of the Kuomintang
party, he thereby caused discontent in the USSR. In connection with
this, the Soviet Union began to support the national liberation movement
of the peoples of Uyghuria.
In 1941, the Kazakhs rebelled. The
motive was the Kazakhs' discontent with the fact that the government of
Sheng Shicai was transferring pastures and watering places to settled
peasants - Dungans and Chinese. Artillery, tanks and aviation were
thrown against the rebels. After the betrayal of the top brass, the
uprising was led by Ospan Islam-uly, he led one of the large detachments
of rebels, and Kalibek Rahimbek-uly.
Sheng Shicai tried to
correct his mistake by writing a letter of repentance to Stalin, in
which he proposed accepting Xinjiang as the 18th republic into the USSR
(Mongolia was unofficially considered the 17th), but was refused. Sheng
Shicai was replaced by his brother, Sheng Shiying, a graduate of the Red
Army Academy. In 1942, he died under mysterious circumstances. According
to the official version, he was stabbed to death by his Russian wife,
who would soon be found strangled.
1942 was the year of the
curtailment of Soviet-Xinjiang cooperation. That year, the Xinjiang
leadership introduced a state monopoly on foreign trade, which led to
the closure of the Soviet office "Sovsintorg". On October 5, 1942, Shen
Shicai sent an official note to the Soviet government, in which he
demanded the recall of all Soviet teachers, advisers, medical workers,
technical specialists from Xinjiang within 3 months and the withdrawal
of the Red Army units stationed there from the territory of the
province. Even earlier, in 1941, they began to curtail the activities of
the aircraft plant in the Urumqi region. Thus, the aircraft assembled
there were flown to Alma-Ata in 1941. In 1942-1943, the enterprise was
dismantled, and the equipment was taken to the USSR. After the departure
of a significant number of Soviet specialists, the United States became
more active in the region, opening its consulate in Urumqi in 1943.
Meanwhile, the uprising of Ospan Islam-uly was supported by the
Kazakhs who inhabited Altai, Tarbagatai and the Ili district. The Soviet
consul wrote to Dekanozov: "The Kazakh group headed by Ospan, under
favorable conditions, can play a decisive role in preparing a new Kazakh
uprising in Altai." Later, Stalin called Ospan-batyr a "social bandit",
however, in view of the change in priorities of the central Chinese
government in Xinjiang, Moscow made a temporary bet on the Kazakhs and
Uyghurs. The Mongols supplied the rebels of Ospan Islam-uly with weapons
- the delivery of one of the batches was ensured by Sukhe-baatar's son
Damdin. In the spring of 1944, Ospan-batyr led several thousand of his
fellow tribesmen to Mongolia who refused to submit to the demands of the
authorities, to move to the southern part of Xinjiang, and the retreat
was covered from the air by Mongolian and Soviet aviation.
The
summer of 1943 was marked by a surge in anti-Soviet sentiment in
Xinjiang. The redeployment of military units loyal to the Kuomintang
began. By the end of the Patriotic War, their number in Xinjiang
amounted to 100 thousand people, mainly Han and Dungans.
In 1943,
with the assistance of Soviet intelligence, the organization of freedom
of East Turkestan "Azat Tashkilaty" was created. On November 8, 1944,
the underground Military Revolutionary Committee, meeting in the city of
Ghulja, announced the beginning of an armed uprising. By order of Beria
in December 1944, the Department of Special Assignments of the NKVD of
the USSR was formed. Its main tasks were to lead and assist the national
liberation movement of Muslims in Xinjiang. At the same time, a group of
people who had undergone special training in the Medeu region was formed
from among local residents. Then it was sent to Xinjiang, where it began
to create partisan detachments. The commander of one of them was a Tatar
from Jarkent, Fatykh Muslimov, who later took up a responsible post in
the military department of the East Turkestan Republic.
In a few
days, all strategically important points of the Ili Territory were
liberated from the Kuomintang. The Chinese garrisons were destroyed. The
Chinese troops that came to the rescue from Urumqi were dispersed.
Representatives of all non-Chinese nationalities acted in close
cooperation. On November 12, 1944, the East Turkestan Republic (ETR) was
solemnly proclaimed in the city of Ghulja. Territorially, it covered
three of the ten districts of Xinjiang - Ili, Tarbagatai, Altai. Marshal
Alikhan Tura, an Uzbek by nationality, was proclaimed president of the
republic. His first deputy was the Uyghur prince Khakimbek Khoja, and
his deputy was a representative of a noble Kazakh family - Abulkhair
Tore. In April 1945, the National Army of East Turkestan was formed, its
commander was the Soviet Major General Ivan Polinov. He was supervised
by "Ivan Ivanovich" - Major General of the NKVD Vladimir Yegnarov. The
chief of staff was General Varsonofy Mozharov (he had previously served
in Dutov's army), and the Uyghur Zunun Taipov was appointed deputy
commander of the army. The division commanders were the Kazakh Dalelkhan
Sugurbayev (a native of Mongolia), the Russian Pyotr Aleksandrov, and
the Kyrgyz Ishakbek Monuyev (in some documents he appears as Muniev).
Ospan Islam-uly was appointed governor of the Altai District, but
friction immediately began between him and the government, and he
refused to carry out its orders.
Although the proclaimed republic had won a number of serious military
victories and was ready to liberate the remaining districts of Uyghuria,
its fate was sealed. The fact is that paragraph 3 of the Appendix to the
Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation concluded between China and the
Soviet Union in August 1945 (signed by V. M. Molotov and the Minister of
Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China Wang Shijie) concerned
Uyghuria. It stated that "regarding the development of Xinjiang, the
Soviet government declares that, in accordance with Article V of the
Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, it will not interfere in the
internal affairs of China."
The Uyghur leaders knew nothing about
the existence of this secret appendix. As a result, under pressure from
the USSR, they were forced to sit down at the negotiating table with a
representative of the Kuomintang. Moreover, the delegation was headed by
one of the famous Uyghur figures, Akhmetzhan Kasimi, since the president
of the republic, Alikhan Tura, was taken to the territory of the Soviet
Union.
At the same time as the negotiations between the
Kuomintang and the CPC began, negotiations on a ceasefire in Xinjiang
began. The government of Chiang Kai-shek was represented by General
Zhang Zhizhong, the VTR by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vice-Premier
Akhmetzhan Kasimi. They were long and difficult. In the summer of 1946,
the "Eleven Point Agreement" came into force. A coalition government was
formed, headed by Zhang Zhizhong, and his first deputy was Akhmetzhan
Kasimi. It did not last even a year, and fell apart.
After the
final victory of the CPC over the Kuomintang in mid-August 1949, at the
head of the VTR delegation, Kasimi left Kuldja for Beijing via Alma-Ata
and Irkutsk for a meeting of the People's Political Consultative
Conference of China. Most likely, this route was dictated by the need to
meet with representatives of the Soviet leadership, at which he hoped to
convince Moscow to preserve the independence of the VTR. A few days
later, an Il-12 plane crash with the VTR government on board was
announced. The exact location of the plane crash has not yet been named;
some sources say the crash occurred near Irkutsk, while others say it
occurred near Chita. There is a conspiracy theory that the VTR
delegation was arrested by Soviet state security agencies and then all
were killed, and the plane crash was staged posthumously. The remains of
the victims were handed over to the VTR representatives and buried in
the city park in Kulja. Twelve years later, the body of one of them,
Dalelkhan Sugurbayev, was reburied in Alma-Ata.
Muhammad Imin
Bughra and Isa Yusuf Alptekin emigrated to Turkey, and Masud Sabri
Baykuzi went to Iran. In 1949, the Tatar Bolshevik Burhan Shakhidi, who
showed loyalty to the new authorities, the Chinese communists, headed
the Urumqi government. The Politburo of the CPC Central Committee
decided to deploy 250,000 PLA units to Xinjiang (Uyghuria) and begin
mass resettlement of the Han population there. At the end of 1955, the
establishment of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region was officially
announced.
As in the rest of the PRC, in Xinjiang, since 1950, a division into
"special regions" was introduced, which were renamed "counties" in the
late 1960s. Also in 1970, Ngari County was transferred from the Tibet
Autonomous Region to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, but in 1979
it was returned to Tibet. While in other parts of the PRC, as a result
of urbanization, the overwhelming majority of counties were transformed
into "urban counties" in the 1990s, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
(along with Tibet) remains the part of China that still has ordinary
non-urbanized counties.
Despite the measures declared by the
Beijing authorities to help national minorities, the attitude of the
non-Han population towards the PRC authorities remained ambiguous.
During the years of the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution,
anti-Chinese sentiment in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
intensified. For example, in 1962, 60 thousand border residents fled
from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to the USSR. In 1969, a
Sino-Soviet conflict occurred in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region,
in the area of Lake Zhalanashkol. The Chinese authorities did not
particularly trust the local residents either. Therefore, Beijing
encouraged the resettlement of Uyghurs to other areas of the PRC, and
the Han to the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The Xinjiang Production
and Construction Corps, created in 1954, became a special body for
monitoring the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. As of the early 2010s,
this paramilitary organization is subordinate to three different
authorities: the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the PRC Ministry of
Defense, and the PRC authorities. The Corps is divided into 13
agricultural divisions (by arable land areas) with a total of 2,453,600
people (including 933,000 managers). In addition to developing the
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the Corps is also used to suppress
unrest among local residents. In particular, the Corps forces suppressed
unrest in the Barinskaya volost (1990), in Kuldzha (1997). In 2000, a
law was passed on the participation of the people's militia of the Corps
in maintaining public order.
After the collapse of the USSR in
1991 led to the so-called "liberation of Western Turkestan" (the
formation of independent Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and
Uzbekistan), the East Turkestan Islamic Movement emerged in 1993. It
claimed responsibility for more than 200 acts of terrorism, which killed
at least 162 people and injured more than 440.
On February 5,
1997, several hundred young Uyghurs held a rally in Kuldzha to protest
against the actions of the authorities. After attempts to disperse the
protesters, the situation got out of control and escalated into mass
riots, resulting in casualties.
In 2007, a battle between
Islamists and Chinese police took place in Akto County.
On July
5-7, 2009, as a result of the police suppression of mass demonstrations
by Uyghurs, at least 129 people were killed and about 1,600 were injured
(according to official statements by the Chinese authorities). Local
authorities demanded the use of capital punishment against the
"instigators of the unrest." According to Uyghur exiles, the death toll
reached 600.
Xinjiang is predominantly inhabited by Turkic peoples, of whom the
Uyghurs are the largest group. The northern part of the region is mostly
populated by Kazakhs, Mongolians, and some Tuvans. Kyrgyz, Mongolians
(Oirats) and Tajiks also live in the west.
In the 2020 census,
Xinjiang had 25,852,345 permanent residents. 10,920,098 residents
(42.24%) belonged to the Han nationality and 14,932,247 (57.76%)
belonged to national minorities. Among the minorities, the Uyghurs
formed the largest group with 11,624,257 (44.96% of the total population
and 77.85% of the minority population). In the previous census in 2010,
Xinjiang had 21,813,334 inhabitants. In the decade from 2010 to 2020,
the population increased by 4,039,011 people (+18.52%). Xinjiang is
therefore one of the fastest growing parts of China in terms of
demographics. The Han population grew by 2.174 million and the Uyghur
population by 1.623 million (+16.2%).
14,613,622 inhabitants
(56.53%) lived in urban areas and 11,238,723 (43.47%) in rural areas in
2020. Compared to 2010, the proportion of the urban population increased
by 13.73 percentage points.
According to the 1953 census, the
Uighurs made up 75 percent of the population (over 3.6 million), but in
2000 it was only 45% (over 8.3 million); the Han population, on the
other hand, rose from 6% (300,000) to 41% (7.6 million) in the same
period. Kazakhs (7%) and Hui (5%) follow at a considerable distance. All
other ethnic groups (including Kirghiz, Tajiks and Mongolians) make up
less than 1% of the population.
The main religion in Xinjiang among the Uighurs and Hui Chinese is Islam, while many of the Han Chinese practice Chinese folk religions, Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism, or are non-religious. Muslims make up 58% of the population (as of 2010). 1% of the population is Christian.
As an important channel and hub for economic and cultural exchange
between the East and the West, East Turkestan has long been a region of
coexistence of many religions. Before the penetration of Islam into East
Turkestan, many religions had already spread along the Silk Road,
including Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Manichaeism, and
Nestorianism, which flourished in various areas along with the primitive
local religion. After the penetration of Islam, various religions
continued to coexist in Xinjiang, and Catholicism was added to them.
Before the penetration of other religions from outside, the ancient
locals of East Turkestan practiced the primitive local religion, which
later developed into shamanism. Some ethnic minorities in Xinjiang still
practice primitive religion and shamanism and related customs to varying
degrees.
Originating around the 4th century BC in ancient Persia,
Zoroastrianism, which is called Xianjiao (fire worship) in China, spread
from Central Asia to East Turkestan. From the era of the Southern and
Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, fire worship was
widespread in various parts of East Turkestan, but especially in the
Turpan region. During that period, the Gaochang authorities created
special bodies and appointed officials to strengthen control over this
religion. Some of the ethnic groups in Xinjiang, who today profess
Islam, used to profess Zoroastrianism.
Around the 1st century BC,
Buddhism, which originated in India, spread to East Turkestan through
Kashmir. Soon, with the extensive spread of Buddhism by the ruling
rulers in various areas, it became the main religion in the region.
During the flourishing period of Buddhism, many Buddhist temples and
monasteries were built in the oases around the Tarim Basin, many
communities of monks and nuns were formed, and such famous Buddhist
centers as Yutian, Shule, Qiuci and Gaochang emerged. In East Turkestan,
Buddhism reached its heights in sculpture, painting, music, dance,
monastery architecture and stone cave traditions, leaving a rich and
valuable cultural heritage, enriching the Chinese and world treasury of
culture and art.
Around the 5th century, Taoism, which flourished
in the interior, was brought to Xinjiang by the Han. But it did not
spread widely, mainly in Turpan and Hami, where the Han lived compactly.
And only after the conquest of East Turkestan by the Qing Empire did it
spread to all its regions.
Around the 6th century, Manichaeism
penetrated from Persia through Central Asia to East Turkestan. In the
middle of the 9th century, the Uyghurs, whose state faith was
Manichaeism, after moving to East Turkestan contributed to the
development of this faith there. The Uyghurs, who professed Manichaeism,
built many monasteries in the Turpan region, dug stone caves, translated
canons, enriched art with frescoes, thus spreading the dogmas and
culture of Manichaeism. Before and after the penetration of Manichaeism
in East Turkestan, Nestorianism (an early movement in Christianity)
appeared, but it was unable to spread widely and flourished in the Yuan
Dynasty (1206-1368) only because many Uyghurs accepted this faith.
At the end of the 9th century and the beginning of the 10th century,
Islam penetrated the southern regions of East Turkestan from Central
Asia. In the mid-10th century, the Muslim Karakhanid dynasty waged a war
against the Buddhist Yutian principality that lasted for over 40 years.
In the early 11th century, after the collapse of the Yutian
principality, Islam spread throughout the Khotan region. In the mid-14th
century, the Chagatai Ulus (a state founded by the second son of the
Mongol Khan Genghis Khan in the western region) was forcibly converted
to Islam, which became the main religion of the local Mongols, Turks
(Uyghurs and ancestors of the Uzbeks, Kazakhs and Kyrgyz) and Tajiks. By
the early 16th century, Islam had almost completely supplanted other
faiths and became the main religion in East Turkestan. After Islam
became the main religion of the Uyghurs and other nationalities,
Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism and Nestorianism, which were previously
professed by these nationalities, gradually disappeared in East
Turkestan, but Buddhism and Taoism still existed. Moreover, starting
with the Ming Empire, Tibetan Buddhism developed greatly, becoming,
together with Islam, the main religion in East Turkestan. At the end of
the 17th century, the leader of the Islamic sect "Baishan" Apak Khoja,
with the help of Buddhists (Tibetans), destroyed his political opponents
in Karakhoja (Gaochang), as a result of which the Yarkand Khanate (a
local government with its center in present-day Shachen, established by
the descendants of the Mongol Khan Chagatai in 1514-1680) collapsed.
This indicated that Tibetan Buddhism had a great influence at that time.
Around the 18th century, Catholicism came to Xinjiang, and Buddhism,
Taoism, and Shamanism developed relatively strongly. Many monasteries
and temples of these religions appeared in the north and south of
Tianshan, and some Muslims even converted to Catholicism and other
religions.
Historically, religions in Xinjiang have continuously
evolved, but after various religions entered Xinjiang from outside, many
religions have always coexisted there. Today, the main religions in
Xinjiang are Islam, Buddhism (including Tibetan Buddhism), Christianity
(Catholicism), and Taoism. Among some ethnic groups, shamanism still has
a relatively large influence.
The headquarters of the Xinjiang Military Region of the Western
Military Region and the Xinjiang Military Institute of Foreign Languages
are located in Urumqi; the headquarters of the 8th Army Aviation
Brigade are in Kashgar; the missile test site and the headquarters of
the 646th Missile Brigade are in Korla; and the nuclear test site is in
Lop Nor.
In each significant settlement in the region, military
units of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and the People's
Armed Police of China are based.
The financial crisis of 2007-2008 also affected the economic
situation in Xinjiang. In the first quarter of 2009, the total volume of
foreign trade was $2.7 billion (- 21.8% compared to 2008); exports
decreased by 24.2%, imports by 6.2%. Since 80% of Xinjiang's foreign
trade is oriented toward Central Asian countries, the economic crisis in
these countries also affected the economy of Xinjiang. The main trading
partner in the region is Kazakhstan (share of imports - 44%, exports -
39%). According to the results of 2008, the volume of Xinjiang's exports
amounted to $19.3 billion, imports - $2.9 billion. Most of Xinjiang's
foreign trade is connected with Kazakhstan through the Ala Pass. The
first free trade zone on the border of China is located in the border
town of Khorgos. It is the largest "land port" in western China and has
convenient access to Central Asian markets. Xinjiang's second border
trade zone opened in Zimunai County in March 2006.
GDP per capita
in 2009 was 19,798 yuan (US$2,898), an increase of 1.7%. Nominal GDP,
which was 220 billion yuan (US$28 billion) in 2004, increased to 657.4
billion yuan (US$104.3 billion) in 2011, mainly due to the development
of regions rich in coal, oil, and natural gas.
At the end of
2020, the gross regional product of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
increased by 3.4% year-on-year to about 1.38 trillion yuan (about 213
billion US dollars). The added value of the primary economy of the
region amounted to 198.13 billion yuan (+ 4.3% compared to 2019), while
the added value of the secondary economy reached 474.45 billion yuan (+
7.8%). The added value of the service sector increased by 0.2%
year-on-year to 707.19 billion yuan.
At the end of 2020, the
volume of investment in fixed assets in Xinjiang increased by 16.2%
year-on-year; the number of new projects launched increased by more than
40% year-on-year. Investment in the primary sector of the economy more
than doubled compared with 2019, reaching the highest level in a decade;
investment in infrastructure increased by 28%; investment in health and
social work increased by 130% year on year.
During the 14th
Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), Xinjiang focused on developing such
industries as oil and natural gas production, oil refining and
petrochemicals, coal mining and coal chemicals, electric power, textiles
and clothing, electronics, forestry and horticulture, agricultural and
subsidiary product processing, naan production, winemaking, and tourism.
At the end of 2021, the gross regional product of the Xinjiang Uygur
Autonomous Region increased by 7% year on year to 1.6 trillion yuan
(about 253.2 billion US dollars).
From 2012 to 2021, Xinjiang's
gross regional product increased from 741.183 billion yuan to 1598.365
billion yuan; the annual per capita disposable income of urban residents
increased from 17,900 yuan to 37,600 yuan, and that of rural residents
increased from 6,390 yuan to 15,570 yuan; the sown area of crops
increased from 77.05 million mu to 95.81 million mu; the length of
railways increased from 4,914 km to 8,152 km, and that of expressways
from 2,277 km to 7,014 km; the number of domestic tourists increased
from 47.11 million to 190.567 million. In the first half of 2023,
Xinjiang's GRP was more than 854.2 billion yuan (119.8 billion US
dollars), up 5.1% year on year. The added value of the primary economy
of Xinjiang was 57.15 billion yuan (up 5.6% year on year), 344.38
billion yuan in the secondary economy (up 6.2%), and 452.67 billion yuan
in the tertiary economy (up 4.3%). The gross output value of
agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery in Xinjiang exceeded
123.8 billion yuan (up 5.7% year on year).
In 2023, Xinjiang's
total trade volume reached 357.3 billion yuan; grain crop areas reached
more than 2.8 million hectares, grain production exceeded 21 million
tons; 482.2 thousand new jobs were created in cities and urban-type
settlements.
Xinjiang is home to such large companies as Xinjiang
Zhongtai Group (chemical products), Xinxin Mining Industry (non-ferrous
metals), Goldwind (wind turbines), Jinko Solar (solar modules), TBEA
(power and electrical equipment), Xinjiang New Energy Group (green
energy).
The Tarim Basin is home to PetroChina and Sinopec. The Tarim field is
the third-largest onshore oil and gas field in China. As of 2020, CNPC
had produced 6 million tons of petroleum liquids and over 30.1 billion
cubic meters of natural gas in the Tarim Basin. In 2022, the Tarim
field's oil and natural gas production was 33.1 million tons of oil
equivalent, up 1.28 million tons from the previous year.
Production in Aksu and Karamay is on the rise. The West-East Natural Gas
Pipeline, which began operation in 2004, delivers gas to Shanghai and
other cities in eastern China. The oil and petrochemical sector accounts
for 60% of Xinjiang's local economy. The region's largest petrochemical
company is Xinjiang Zhongtai Group.
Xinjiang has large mineral deposits. Since the late 19th century, the
region has been known as a center for the production of salt, soda,
gold, jade, and coal. In addition, Xinjiang supplies nearly half of the
world's polysilicon.
Xinjiang is the fourth-largest
coal-producing region in China. In 2022, proven coal reserves amounted
to 450 billion tons, or one-quarter of China's total proven coal
reserves, ranking second after Inner Mongolia. In 2022, Xinjiang
produced 400 million tons of run-of-mine coal, up 25% from the previous
year. A total of 80 million tons of coal were shipped to other regions
of the country, nearly double the amount in 2021.
Xinjiang has a steadily growing share of green energy: as of the end
of 2021, the installed capacity of solar power plants accounted for
11.8% of the total installed capacity of power plants, while the
capacity of wind power plants accounted for 22.6%. Xinjiang is a major
exporter of electricity. The first transmission line was put into
operation on November 3, 2010. The annual transmission capacity of
electricity from Xinjiang increased from 3 billion kWh in 2010 to more
than 100 billion kWh in 2020.
State Grid Corporation of China
supplies electricity generated by Xinjiang's solar and wind power plants
to densely populated provinces in eastern China. From 2010 to 2019,
Xinjiang transmitted 300 billion kWh of electricity through four
channels to 19 provinces and cities in China. In September 2019, new
3,324 km of ultra-high voltage lines were launched (the total investment
in their construction amounted to 40.7 billion yuan or about 6 billion
dollars).
In 2020, Xinjiang generated about 403 billion kWh of
electricity, which is 11.8% more than in 2019. Electricity generation at
thermal power plants amounted to 326 billion kWh (+ 14.2% year-on-year),
at wind power plants - 42.3 billion kWh (+ 7.3%), at hydroelectric power
plants - 22.6 billion kWh (- 9.7%), at solar power plants - 12.6 billion
kWh (+ 14.3%).
In addition to oil production, Sinopec is building
its own solar power plants in the Taklamakan Desert.
In 2023,
Xinjiang generated 502.6 billion kWh of electricity; the power
generation capacity of non-conventional power plants reached 90.5
billion kWh. In April 2024, the installed capacity of Xinjiang's new
energy power plants exceeded 70 million kW, accounting for nearly half
of the region's total installed capacity; as of summer 2024, their
installed capacity exceeded 80 million kW.
As of October 2021, Xinjiang's daily naan production capacity reached 23.25 million pieces, employing 113,000 people, and generating daily sales of about RMB 57.52 million (US$8.92 million).
In 2023, Xinjiang's textile and clothing export value reached 107.6 billion yuan (including 16.99 billion yuan of yarn, fabric and related products, up 74% year-on-year). Clothing and accessories export value was 90.6 billion yuan, up 29.1% year-on-year.
By the end of 2019, Xinjiang's arable land area reached 106 million
mu (about 7 million hectares), an increase of 28.7 million mu compared
with 2009. Irrigated land accounted for 96% of the total arable land
area, dryland accounted for 3.15%, and paddy field accounted for 0.85%.
respectively. Xinjiang's cultivated land is mainly used to grow
agricultural products such as grain, cotton, sugar crops and vegetables.
Xinjiang is famous for its fruits and other agricultural products,
including grapes, melons, pears, cotton, wheat, silk, walnuts and sheep.
Xinjiang produces 85% of China's cotton and 20% of the world's cotton.
Hundreds of thousands of Uighur Muslims are forced to work in the cotton
harvest.
As of 2021, Xinjiang had harvested over 5.1 million tons
of cotton (about 90% of the country's total cotton production). More
than 80% of the cotton was harvested by machines. As of 2022, the cotton
cultivation area in Xinjiang was about 2.5 million hectares, and there
were more than 6.3 thousand units of cotton harvesting equipment in the
region. As of the end of 2022, Xinjiang had harvested over 5.39 million
tons of cotton (90.2% of the country's total cotton production).
Xinjiang has established a procurement system covering all fruit-growing
areas, and as of 2022, the warehouse capacity reached 5 million tons,
with a total of 5,370 retail outlets operating outside the Xinjiang.
Stevia is also grown in Xinjiang, from the leaves of which glycosides
are extracted; Floriculture is developing rapidly, especially the
cultivation of lavender, roses and peonies.
In 2022, the area of
wheat sown in Xinjiang was more than 17 million mu, and the
mechanization rate in wheat harvesting reached 98.78%. In 2023, Xinjiang
harvested more than 20 million tons of grain. As of 2023, Xinjiang has
built grain storage facilities with a total capacity of 14 million tons.
In 2020, despite restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 epidemic,
more than 158 million tourists (mainly domestic) visited the Xinjiang
Uygur Autonomous Region. In the first 10 months of 2021, Xinjiang
received a total of 170 million tourists and earned 129.44 billion yuan
(about 20.4 billion US dollars) in tourism revenue. Tourism revenue
during the period increased by 16.8% year-on-year. In 2023, Xinjiang
welcomed 265 million tourists (+117% year-on-year); tourism revenue
increased by 227% to 296.72 billion yuan (41.77 billion US dollars); the
passenger traffic at Xinjiang airports exceeded 40 million person-times
(+143.8%). In 2024, Xinjiang welcomed more than 300 million tourists
(+14% year-on-year); total tourism revenue reached 355.2 billion yuan
(about 49 billion US dollars, +21%). The main tourist attractions in
Xinjiang are the Fire Mountains, the Pamir Mountains including Mount
Muztagata, the Altay Mountains, the Tianchi, Karakul, Kanas and
Sairamnur lakes, the Taklamakan and Hami deserts, the Kalamayili Nature
Reserve, the Appak Khoja Mausoleum, the Toghluk Timur Mausoleum, the
Emin Minaret and the remains of the ancient water system in Turpan, the
Id Kah Mosque in Kashgar, the Astana Cemetery, the Bezeklik and Kizil
Buddhist caves, the ruins of the ancient cities of Gaochang, Jiaohe,
Miran and Niya, the abandoned oases of Dandan Oylik and Loulan, the Big
Buddha statue in Midun and the Grand Bazaar in Urumqi.
In 2021,
Xinjiang's digital economy reached 425.57 billion yuan, up nearly 13%
year-on-year. From 2016 to 2021, Xinjiang's digital economy expanded
from 204.868 billion yuan to 425.57 billion yuan, with an average annual
growth rate of 17.95%. The proportion of Xinjiang's digital economy in
GDP increased from 21.3% in 2016 to 27.36% in 2021.
As of August 2021, Xinjiang had built 10,490 5G base stations.
In 2023, online retail sales in Xinjiang increased by 23.68% to 64.09 billion yuan (US$8.91 billion). Online retail sales in rural areas of Xinjiang increased by 31.07% year-on-year to 33.88 billion yuan. Online retail sales of agricultural products increased by 22.81% year-on-year to 19.32 billion yuan. Live streaming sales increased by 56.02% to 5.06 billion yuan.
The region's largest foreign trade partners are Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, with Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Russia, South
Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand also contributing.
Xinjiang exports electromechanical products, batteries, solar panels,
electric vehicles, fabrics, clothing, and footwear, and imports mainly
raw materials (cotton, wool, natural gas, timber), agricultural
products, and food (including meat, dairy, and fish products, fresh and
dried fruits, melons, nuts, grains, and legumes). About 1/5 of
Xinjiang's foreign trade comes from the bonded zones in Kashgar,
Alashankou, Khorgos, and Urumqi.
In the first six months of 2021,
the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region's foreign trade increased by 19.1%
year-on-year to reach 65.87 billion yuan (about 10.19 billion US
dollars).
On December 8, 2021, the US House of Representatives
passed a bill to restrict imports of goods from the Xinjiang Uyghur
Autonomous Region. According to the document, only those Xinjiang goods
that are not produced using forced labor will be allowed to be imported
to the United States. Despite restrictions from the US and EU countries,
Xinjiang's foreign trade with countries along the Belt and Road,
especially with Kyrgyzstan and Vietnam, increased in 2021.
In the
first half of 2023, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region's foreign trade
volume reached 149.62 billion yuan (US$20.9 billion), an increase of
65.2% year-on-year. The region's trade volume with five Central Asian
countries increased by 75.1% to 119.66 billion yuan. Xinjiang's electric
vehicle exports increased by 363.3%, while solar panel exports increased
by 55.9 times.
In November 2023, the Xinjiang Pilot Free Trade
Zone, covering a total area of nearly 180 square kilometers (the three
sections of the FTZ are located in Urumqi, Horgos and Kashgar),
officially began operation.
In 2023, Xinjiang's total foreign
trade volume reached 357.33 billion yuan (US$50.33 billion), an increase
of 45.9% year-on-year. Xinjiang's trade with the five Central Asian
countries increased by 50% year-on-year, accounting for 79.4% of
Xinjiang's total foreign trade; Xinjiang's trade with Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan increased by 70.8%, 25.8%, and 93.4%,
respectively. The volume of imports and exports of private enterprises
increased by 48.4%, accounting for 93.2% of Xinjiang's total foreign
trade.
The Chinese government has been using forced labor extensively in
Xinjiang. Since 2016, it has been building mass camps to re-educate
Muslims, and since 2018, the government has been implementing an
industrialization program that has included the establishment of
hundreds of textile and garment factories. Many of the enterprises have
sprung up either on the territory of the camps or near them.
While the poor made up nearly 20% of Xinjiang's population in 2014,
their share had dropped to less than 1% in 2020.
By the end of 2023, the volume of freight traffic through Xinjiang border crossings increased by 8.6% compared to 2022 and amounted to 74.7 million tons. By the end of 2023, the total length of highways in Xinjiang reached 227.9 thousand km, the operational length of railways was 9.53 thousand km, and the number of civil airports reached 25.
The main cargoes transported by Xinjiang railways are coal,
fertilizers, metal ore, cotton, tomato paste, sugar and flour.
Xinjiang is an important transshipment hub on the East China-Central
Asia-Europe freight rail route. Every year, thousands of freight trains
cross the border at the Alashankou and Khorgos checkpoints.
In
2022, 13,300 freight trains on China-Europe international freight train
routes passed through Alashankou and Horgos ports, up 8.7% year-on-year.
Among them, the number of trains departing from Xinjiang increased by
21.5% year-on-year to 1,440 units.
As of 2022, the total length of highways in Xinjiang reached 217,300
km, including 36,700 km of national or provincial highways and more than
10,000 km of expressways. All prefectures, regions and prefectural
cities in Xinjiang are connected by expressways, and 107 counties and
county-level cities are connected by second-class highways or higher.
In the desert areas of Xinjiang, large-scale automobile construction
is underway. The roads are surrounded by forest shelterbelts that are
irrigated by solar power plants.
As of 2023, there were 25 operating civil airports in Xinjiang and eight more were under construction. All civil airports were operated by the state-owned Xinjiang Airport Group. The largest in the region, Urumqi Diwopu International Airport, has regular flights to 23 destinations in 19 countries (in the first half of 2023, it served more than 10 million passengers). In addition, Urumqi is connected by five regular cargo air routes to airports in Central and West Asia. As of September 2023, there were 42 airlines operating in Xinjiang, serving 420 routes (the largest are China Southern Airlines and Tianjin Airlines).
The most important historical museums in Xinjiang are the Museum of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Urumqi, the Turpan Museum in Turpan, and the Hotan Museum in Hotan.
The region is home to Xinjiang University and Shihezi University.
The leading scientific research institutions in Xinjiang are Shihezi University (Shihezi), Xinjiang Medical University (Urumqi), Xinjiang Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Urumqi), and Xinjiang Institute of Technology of Physics and Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Urumqi).
The largest newspaper in Xinjiang is the organ of the Communist Party of China, Xinjiang Ribao, published in Chinese, Uyghur, Kazakh, and Mongolian. The Chapchal Serkin newspaper and the Kershi magazine are also published in the region.
Urumqi is home to the Xinjiang Sports Center, the largest stadium in the autonomous region.