Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has pledged to accelerate its development by further opening up.

The regional government was drafting a development plan that focuses on "westward opening up," said Nur Bekri, Chairman of the regional government, at a symposium on Xinjiang's economic policy on July 4.

Xinjiang has forged economic and trade relationships with 160 countries and regions. It has 29 open ports to neighboring countries and 12 national-level industrial zones. The Sino-Kazakhstan oil pipeline and the Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan-China gas pipeline have been completed and are now operational. Altogether 308 enterprises that rank among the world's top 500 companies and China's 500 leading enterprises had entered Xinjiang by the end of 2010, an increase of 113 from 2009.