Tacheng

Tacheng, also known as Tarbagatay, Chuguchak or Qoqek, is a county-level city and the administrative seat of Tacheng Prefecture, in northern Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang. The Chinese name "Tacheng" is an abbreviation of "Tarbagatay City", a reference to the Tarbagatay Mountains. Tacheng is located in the Dzungarian Basin, some 10 km from the Chinese border with Kazakhstan. For a long time it has been a major center for trade with Central Asia because it is an agricultural hub. Its industries include food processing, textiles, and utilities.

History
In the mid-19th century, Chuguchak was considered the most important commercial center of Western China after Ghulja (Yining), being an important center of trade between China and Russia, in particular in tea. The city, surrounded by an earth wall, was the residence of two Qing ambans and had a garrison of some 1,000 Chinese soldiers and 1,500 Manchu and Mongol soldiers.

Chuguchak suffered harshly in 1865 during the fighting between the Qing forces and the Dungan and Hui rebels.

Tacheng is the site of an internment camp for Turkic Muslims such as the Uyghurs and Kazakhs; it is one of many such camps in Xinjiang. The Chinese government maintains that they are "vocational education centers" for citizens to learn trade skills and the Chinese language, and that the camp was shutdown in 2019. However, satellite imagery shows that the camp expanded five-fold later that year.

Border crossing
The Baktu border crossing  into Kazakhstan is located 17 km from Tacheng. The checkpoint on the Kazakh side of the border is also known as Bakhty and is located 60 km from Makanchi in East Kazakhstan Province. In April 1962, during the Yi–Ta incident, over 60,000 Chinese citizens, including around 48,000 Tacheng residents, crossed the Xinjiang–Kazakh SSR border, leading to massive economic loss in Tacheng; the border crossing closed in August of that year. The crossing re-opened on 20 October 1990, and was deemed a "first-class port of entry" (一类口岸) on 14 March 1994. On 1 July 1995, the crossing opened to use by third nations.

Administrative divisions
Tacheng is divided into 3 subdistricts, 2 towns, 3 townships, and 1 ethnic township,


 * Others
 * Bozdaq Farm (博孜达克农场, بوزداق دېھقانچىلىق مەيدانى, بوزداق اۋىل شارۋاشىلىعى الاڭىنداعى)
 * Tacheng Prefectural Pasture (塔城地区种牛场, تارباغاتاي ۋىلايەتلىك چارۋىچىلىق مەيدانى, تارباعاتاي ايماقتىق مال شارۋاشىلىعى الاڭىنداعى)
 * Woyijiayilao Pasture (窝依加依劳牧场, ئويجايلاۋ چارۋىچىلىق مەيدانى, ۋيجايلاۋ مال شارۋاشىلىعى الاڭىنداعى)
 * XPCC 164th Regiment (兵团一六四团, 164-تۇەن مەيدانى, 164-تۋان الاڭىنداعى)

Climate
Tacheng has a typical Xinjiang cool semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk) that is almost moist enough to be a hot summer humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), as being on the west side of the Altay Mountains the region receives more winter snowfall than most of Xinjiang.

Transportation
The Karamay–Tacheng Railway (opened on May 30, 2019) connects Tacheng with Baikouquan Station (百口泉站) on the Kuytun–Beitun Railway in Karamay City. It takes 9 hours from Tacheng to Ürümqi.

Tacheng is also served by the Tacheng Qianquan Airport with flights to Ürümqi and other cities in Xinjiang.