ASHGABAT, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao wrapped up his tour of two Central Asian countries and left Ashgabat for home Monday evening.

    The Chinese leader arrived in Ashgabat, capital of Turkmenistan, on Sunday from Astana after a working visit to Kazakhstan.

    During his working visit to Turkmenistan, Hu met his Turkmen counterpart Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and exchanged views with him on bilateral ties and major world and regional issues of common concern.

    Hu made new proposals for expanding the pragmatic cooperation between the two countries.

    The Chinese leader also attended an inauguration ceremony for the China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline Monday.

    The 1,833-km pipeline starts at the border between Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and runs through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan before reaching northwest China's Xinjiang region.

    One of the two parallel pipelines which make up the project has been completed and the other line is expected to be operational next year.

    The pipelines, initiated by leaders of China and Turkmenistan, serve the long-term interests of the two countries and will promote their social and economic development, Chinese officials said.

 Special report: President Hu visits Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan