#Kazakhstan and EU to strengthen political and economic co-operation

During a meeting with ambassadors from the European Union member states and the EU delegation in Astana, Foreign Minister Beibut Atamkulov noted that fulfilling the full cooperation potential between Kazakhstan and the EU requires concerted efforts from both the Kazakh Foreign Ministry and the European diplomatic missions in Kazakhstan.

The meeting considered a wide range of topics regarding Kazakh-European co-operation, including the prospects for deepening political, economic and trade partnerships.

In his statement, the Foreign Minister noted that Kazakhstan valued its friendly relations with the EU, characterized by regular political dialogue between the parties. He commended the fruitful outcomes of cooperation in 2018, in particular, the participation of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in the 12th Summit of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Brussels in October 2018, during which he met with President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker and EU leaders.

Special emphasis was given to the effective implementation of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA) between Kazakhstan and the EU and its member states, which is expected to fully enter into force in the near future. The meeting participants agreed that the EPCA would open new horizons of co-operation across the 29 areas specified in the agreement.

Given the Foreign Ministry's role in attracting investment into Kazakhstan and promoting Kazakh exports abroad, the further expansion and diversification of trade and economic relations were the main issues on the agenda. The EU has already been Kazakhstan's largest trade and investment partner for many years. Over the first 11 months of 2018, trade amounted to $34.4 billion, while foreign direct investment from the EU countries attracted to Kazakhstan's economy in the first half of 2018 totalled $12.3bn. In Kazakhstan today, European companies are engaged in the implementation of 24 large-scale investment projects, worth around $3bn.

The minister stressed that Kazakhstan's priorities include the comprehensive diversification of exports, search for new markets, creation of joint high-tech ventures, as well as the export of high-quality and in-demand services.

“Today, Kazakhstan has set itself the goal of becoming one of the 30 most developed countries in the world. To do so, we need comprehensive measures aimed at modernizing the country's economy, therefore investment and export are important,” Atamkulov noted.

Given the significant role that a strong business climate has on the mobility of citizens, it was noted that the facilitation of the EU visa regime for Kazakh citizens would support the development of comprehensive co-operation. In this regard, the Foreign Minister called on the European interlocutors to support negotiations to facilitate the visa regime for Kazakh citizens.

The sides also discussed the process of updating the EU Strategy for Central Asia. The positive development of dialogue in the Central Asian region in recent years was noted, opening up new prospects for interaction between the EU and Central Asia. “Kazakhstan is ready to actively contribute to the implementation of the new strategy, which will serve as an effective and multifunctional basis for even deeper cooperation, and will also further strengthen the partnership within the region,” Atamkulov said.

Along with this, the participants of the meeting exchanged views on topical international and regional issues, in particular, on the prospects of EAEU-EU relations, regional cooperation in Central Asia, and interaction in light of the China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Following the meeting, the participants agreed to hold regular meetings in this format and maintain close contacts. At the same time, it was stressed that the Kazakh side is open to dialogue, and to the exchange of new ideas and proposals to further build up Kazakh-European co-operation.

There are currently 22 embassies of EU member states working in Kazakhstan, as well as the EU Delegation in Astana.