Kazakhstan and Uruguay: a New Stage in the Development of Bilateral Relations

20.05.2024, 14:04 546

Kazakhstan and U.S. Continue Constructive Dialogue on Human Rights and Democratic Reforms

Images | Kazakh MFA

The third meeting of the annual High-level Dialogue on Human Rights and Democratic Reforms between Kazakhstan and the United States took place in Astana co-chaired by Assistant to the President of Kazakhstan for International Affairs Erzhan Kazykhan and U.S. Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.

During the meeting, the parties discussed in a constructive way cooperation between Kazakhstan and the United States on issues of mutual interest in the field of human rights. The parties focused on further implementation of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s political reform agenda that includes strengthening the protection of rights of people with disabilities, combating trafficking in persons, ensuring freedom of assembly, freedom of speech, supporting the development of media, as well as asset recovery and combating corruption.

The United States reaffirmed its steadfast commitment to fruitful and reliable cooperation based on mutual interests and universal values. Under Secretary Uzra Zeya expressed the United States’ unwavering support for President Tokayev’s political and socio-economic reforms in Kazakhstan, highlighting the importance of consistent implementation of the Action Plan on human rights and the rule of law signed by the President of Kazakhstan last December.

The parties paid special attention to strengthening the policy of zero tolerance for violence against women and children. The United States, in particular, welcomed the law passed on April 15, 2024, which toughened the penalties for domestic violence and violence against children in Kazakhstan.

The participants also discussed promoting human rights at multilateral and regional fora, including through cooperation at the UN Human Rights Council and initiatives of the C5+1 Summit held in New York last year.

Following the meeting, the participants agreed to continue productive interaction and hold the next meeting of the High-Level Dialogue in 2025 in Washington, DC.

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17.05.2024, 20:35 26031

Prospects of Strengthening Cooperation between Kazakhstan and Estonia Discussed in Tallinn

Images | Kazakh MFA

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Roman Vassilenko paid a working visit to Tallinn, where he held meetings with Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia Jonatan Vseviov and Chairman of the Estonia-Kazakhstan friendship group in the Riigikogu (Parliament) Vadim Belobrovtsev, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.

At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, the parties discussed the prospects for developing Kazakh-Estonian political dialogue, enhancing trade, economic and investment cooperation, as well as interaction within the framework of international organizations. Additionally, the issues related to organization of bilateral visits and facilitating the development of inter-departmental ties, as well as business, cultural and educational exchanges were addressed. The parties exchanged views on pressing issues on the regional and international agenda.

Furthermore, Roman Vassilenko emphasized the importance of the strategic partnership with the European Union with a focus on the effective implementation of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Kazakhstan and the EU.

During the meeting with the Estonian deputy, Roman Vassilenko briefed his counterpart on the progress of political and economic reforms in Kazakhstan, particularly on the new electoral system, measures to strengthen parliamentarianism and multi-party system. The parties discussed the opportunities for advancing parliamentary diplomacy and ways to involve parliamentarians further in bilateral cooperation. In this regard, an agreement was reached to elaborate the visit of the Estonian friendship group delegation to Kazakhstan by the end of this year.

During the visit, Roman Vassilenko also participated in the Lennart Meri Conference, where he presented Kazakh approaches to addressing issues on international and regional agenda.

In 2023, the volume of mutual trade between Kazakhstan and Estonia reached 157.5 million US dollars, reflecting a 29% increase (exports of 78.1 million US dollars, imports of 79.4 million US dollars).

As of January 1, 2024, there are 74 companies with Estonian capital operating in Kazakhstan.

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17.05.2024, 18:34 26211

Issues of UN Peacekeeping were Discussed in Astana

Team of the Office for the Rule of law and Security institutions of the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping, headed by Commissioner Faisal Shahkar, paid a visit to Kazakhstan, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.

Talgat Kaliev, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, briefed the UN delegation on foreign policy priorities in the field of combating terrorism and extremism.

In addition, an exchange of views took place on issues of UN peacekeeping, repatriation, reintegration and rehabilitation of persons returned by Kazakhstan from zones of terrorist activity. In particular, the UN delegation was updated on "Zhusan" and "Rusafa" operations in the framework of which about 800 citizens of Kazakhstan have been returned to Kazakhstan.

The UN delegation highly appreciated Kazakhstan’s contribution to the UN peacekeeping activities and emphasized that Kazakhstan has developed a unique positive experience of dealing with returnees from conflict zones, noting that it is worthy of great respect and popularization in the international arena.

The parties agreed to continue interaction on issues of mutual interest.

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16.05.2024, 22:32 26396

Ambassador of Qatar received at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs upon the completion of his diplomatic mission in Kazakhstan

First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kairat Umarov received Ambassador of the State of Qatar Abdulaziz bin Sultan Al-Rumaihi on the occasion of completing his diplomatic mission in Kazakhstan, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.

Kairat Umarov expressed gratitude to the Qatari diplomat for his efforts to further strengthen the mutually beneficial partnership between the two countries. He especially emphasized the high level of political, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation between Astana and Doha, achieved over the past years.

At the end of the meeting, Ambassador of Qatar Abdulaziz Al-Rumeihi was awarded a high state award - the Order of "Dostyk" 2nd degree, in recognition of his service in strengthening friendship and cooperation between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the State of Qatar.

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16.05.2024, 16:30 26561

Kazakhstan and Latvia Intensify Efforts to Deepen Economic Partnership

Images | Kazakh MFA

The 9th meeting of the Kazakhstan-Latvia Intergovernmental Commission on Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation convened under the chairmanship of Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Roman Vassilenko and Minister of Welfare of Latvia Uldis Augulis, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.

Participants included representatives from various sectoral ministries and agencies of both countries. The agenda covered issues such as expanding mutual trade, implementing joint investment projects including in transport and logistics, the agro-industrial complex, digitalization, education, and tourism. The parties expressed satisfaction with the robust growth in bilateral trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Latvia, which reached USD 356.4 million in 2023 (a 63% increase). This positive trend continued in the first quarter of 2024, as mutual trade reached USD 98.5 million, reflecting a 27% increase over the same period of the previous year.

Special attention was given to the impact of the sanctions policy on Kazakhstan’s economy and interaction with foreign partners on this issue.

During the session, the Deputy Minister thoroughly briefed the participants on the results of the socio-economic development of Kazakhstan, preferences for foreign investors, and encouraging Latvian companies to participate in investment projects on the Kazakh market.

Both sides emphasized the key role of the Intergovernmental Commission as a vital instrument in promoting bilateral business cooperation and highlighted the importance of continuing joint efforts to improve the legal framework. The session concluded with the signing of the Commission’s meeting final Protocol.

The day before, Roman Vassilenko also participated in a meeting between Minister of Transport of Kazakhstan Marat Karabayev and Minister of Transport of Latvia Kaspars Briškens. The discussion focused on a complex range of current issues aimed at furthering the development of Kazakh-Latvian relations, including enhancing trade and economic interactions. Specific additional steps were outlined to boost business cooperation, with a focus on implementing promising joint projects in transport and logistics.

During the visit, Roman Vassilenko also met with State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia Andris Pelšs, Head of the Interparliamentary Co-operation Group Linda Liepiņa and her colleagues, as well as Director of the Latvian Institute of International Affairs (LIIA) Karlis Bukovskis.

At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, the discussions centred on the current and future state of bilateral relations and the collaborative endeavours on international stages. The commitment of Astana and Riga to intensify and deepen their political dialogue and to enhance mutually beneficial cooperation in investment, humanitarian, and other sectors was reaffirmed.

During the talks at the Latvian Saeima, a thorough exchange of views on current bilateral and multilateral agenda items took place. Roman Vassilenko informed the Latvian side about the consistent implementation of President Tokayev’s policy aimed at building a Just and Fair Kazakhstan.

At the meeting with Karlis Bukovskis and researchers of LIIA, mutual interest was expressed in further expanding cooperation along the lines of scientific research institutes of Kazakhstan and Latvia.

The negotiations in Riga, conducted in a consistently cordial and trustful atmosphere, affirmed the commitment of both countries to further enhance their relations.

About 145 Latvian enterprises are registered in Kazakhstan, and approximately 100 Kazakh companies operate in Latvia, engaged in logistics, trade, and financial consulting sectors.

From 2005 to 2023, gross inflow of direct investments from Latvia to Kazakhstan amounted to USD 276.4 million.

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16.05.2024, 12:01 35501

Kazakhstan and Germany interested in implementing new joint projects in agribusiness, mining and metallurgy, energy, transport and logistics

Images | primeminister.kz

The 40th anniversary meeting of the Berlin Eurasian Club was held at the Astana International Financial Centre with the participation of Roman Sklyar, First Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Katrina Klaas-Mühlheuser, Chairman of the Board of the Eastern Committee of the German Economy, primeminister.kz reports.

Among the participants of the event were also representatives of the public and private sectors, heads of leading German companies, including CLAAS, CT AGRO GmbH, Knauf International GmbH, Atlas International GmbH and others.

In his welcoming speech, First Deputy Prime Minister noted that Germany is the most important trade, economic and investment partner of Kazakhstan in the European Union. In recent years, our country has entered the list of 50 leading foreign trade partners of Germany, rising by 10 positions at once

An important signal of recognition of high political stability and security of investments in our republic was the inclusion of Kazakhstan by the Federal Government of Germany in the list of 34 states, for cooperation with which there is a favourable procedure for providing investment guarantees," Roman Sklyar said.

In turn, Katrina Klaas-Mühlheuser noted that Kazakhstan is one of the most important partners of Germany in Central Asia. She emphasised that the German delegation arrived in Kazakhstan with the key goal of agreeing on the implementation of specific joint projects in agro-industrial and mining and metallurgical complexes, energy, transport and logistics.

Germany is actively looking for partners abroad and Kazakhstan is a priority area for expanding co-operation. We want to produce products with a high level of added value and plan to contribute to the development of industrial projects in Kazakhstan," Katrina Klaas-Mühlheuser said.

The meeting was also addressed by Rustam Karagoyshin, Chairman of the Board of Baiterek Holding, Michael Harms, Executive Director of the Eastern Committee of the German Economy, Co-Chairman of the Kazakhstan-German Business Council, Hovsep Voskanyan, Head of the Representative Office of the German Economy in Central Asia, Gerlind Heckman, Head of the Department of Foreign Trade, Promotion and Financing of the Federal Ministry of Economy and Climate Protection of the Federal Republic of Germany, and others.

In addition, Roman Sklyar held a meeting with representatives of the German economic delegation, which included heads of 15 German companies. The parties exchanged views, identified key aspects of co-operation and discussed possible ways to deepen partnership in various sectors of the economy.

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16.05.2024, 09:52 35666

Serik Zhumangarin offers Vietnam to use TMTM capacities and produce batteries for electric vehicles in Kazakhstan

Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin held a meeting with Minister of Industry and Trade of Vietnam Nguyen Hong Zien, primeminister.kz reports.

Vietnam is one of the important partners in Asia for Kazakhstan. Based on the results of the official visit of the President of Kazakhstan last August, we note the high activity of our bilateral relations: trade turnover has increased by 85%, reaching almost $1 billion. 13 flights a week are operated between our countries. There is a willingness to expand the geography of flights," Serik Zhumangarin said at the meeting.

The Deputy Prime Minister also suggested Vietnamese companies explore the opportunities of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, which will allow Vietnamese exports to move from east to west 3-4 times faster than sea routes, significantly reducing costs.

We believe the TMTM is the most optimal route between Asia and Europe. We also propose to utilise the capacities of the Kazakh-Chinese terminal in Lianyungang sea port and the dry port in Xi'an," he stressed.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the possibility of co-operation in the mining and processing of rare-earth metals. The Vietnamese delegation was asked to pay attention to large lithium deposits in Kazakhstan to produce lithium-ion batteries for electric cars. This will contribute to the growth of Kazakhstan's high-tech sector and allow Vietnamese carmakers to maintain their competitive advantages.

For reference: in 2023, trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Vietnam totalled $979.2m - an increase of 85.4% compared to 2022 ($528.3m). Exports totalled $180.2m (+44.1%), imports - $799m (+98%).

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15.05.2024, 08:03 47056

Kazakhstan and the UNICEF Compared Notes on Topical Issues of Bilateral and Multilateral Cooperation

First Deputy Foreign Minister Kairat Umarov received Rashed Mustafa Sarwar, the newly appointed United Nations Children’s Fund Representative in Kazakhstan, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.

Kairat Umarov congratulated the Representative on his appointment to such an important post and expressed hope for further strengthening cooperation through the cooperation program between the Government of Kazakhstan and UNICEF for 2021-2025. "Ensuring equal opportunities for children is one of the priority tasks in the policy of the President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. We are committed to protecting children’s rights to life and development and realising their full potential by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Kazakhstan acceded to in 1994", - said the First Deputy Minister.

During the negotiations, the parties discussed current issues of cooperation, including UNICEF project activities in the field of social guarantees for children and the reintegration of women and children returned from conflict zones.

In response, Rashed Sarwar expressed gratitude for the warm welcome and extended congratulations on the 30th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. "Kazakhstan's impressive progress in protecting children’s rights is a testament to our collective efforts. We are motivated to continue our fruitful cooperation, working towards making the dreams of every child a reality", said the UNICEF Representative.

UN Children’s Fund Representative reiterated the importance of strengthening regional cooperation with UNICEF, underscoring its significant role in areas such as child protection, education, health, and nutrition. "Our regional cooperation is a key driver in achieving the sustainable development goals. Each of us has a crucial role in this collective effort", - emphasised the UNICEF Representative.

The parties agreed to continue active interaction to achieve the intended goals, which are the well-being and development of children throughout Kazakhstan.

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) was created in 1946 by the UN General Assembly’s decision to assist children affected by the Second World War. Since 1950, UNICEF has expanded its mandate and the number of countries, becoming a full-fledged UN structure.

UN Children’s Fund’s primary goal is to protect children's rights for their survival and development.

UNICEF has over 6,000 staff working directly in accredited countries; the rest are located at its headquarters and offices in New York, Copenhagen, Florence, and Geneva. In addition to its headquarters, UNICEF has 30 regional offices in Europe, North and South America, Africa, and Asia.

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Kazakhstan and Uruguay: a New Stage in the Development of Bilateral Relations

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