The prospects of establishing a strategic partnership between Kazakhstan and Romania became the key topic on the agenda of the 8th round of political consultations held today in Bucharest. The Kazakh side was represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko, while the Romanian side was represented by State Secretary for Strategic Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ana Tinca, press service of the Kazakh MFA reports.
In the course of the discussion, the diplomats addressed a broad range of issues, including the deepening of political dialogue, the strengthening of trade and economic ties, and the development of investment cooperation. In addition, they exchanged views on current issues on the global and regional agendas.
The Kazakh diplomat emphasized the importance of Romania as a partner of Kazakhstan in South-Eastern Europe and the European Union as a whole. "Today we discussed joint steps to unlock the full potential of Kazakh-Romanian relations with the prospect of bringing them to the level of strategic partnership," said Vassilenko.
It is important to note that particular attention was paid to the qualitative realization of the agreements reached following the negotiations of the presidents of Kazakhstan and Romania on the margins of the UNGA (September 2023), as well as the first official visit of the Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Murat Nurtleu, to Bucharest (December 2023).
The parties involved engaged in discourse on the advancement of interaction within the framework of the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement with the EU, in addition to the EU Strategy for Central Asia.
The matter of trade, economic and investment cooperation between the two countries was a salient issue in the discourse, given Romania’s position as the 10th largest global trade partner. "Cooperation between our countries should not be limited only to partnership in the energy sector, there is a significant potential for development in the transportation and logistics sector within the framework of the Global Gateway initiative," said Deputy Minister Vassilenko.
In turn, Tinca emphasized that Romania attaches great importance to its partnership with Kazakhstan, an important political and economic partner of the country in Central Asia. "Bucharest is interested in expanding interaction on key issues on the bilateral and international agenda, including exchange of the highest and high-level visits, regional security, development of trade corridors, as well as expanding cooperation in energy, defense and agriculture," the Romanian diplomat said.
During the meeting with Florin Spătaru, State Counsellor for Economic Affairs at the Romanian Prime Minister’s Office, the sides agreed to continue implementing concrete steps to deepen the transport, logistics and energy cooperation, including projects in the nuclear field.
At a meeting held on the same day with the State Secretary of the Romanian Ministry of Energy, Pavel Nițulescu, Deputy Minister Vassilenko noted that Kazakhstan, as one of the world’s leading exporters of oil and gas, considers Bucharest a strategic partner in Europe for the supply of energy carriers and the implementation of joint infrastructure projects aimed at realizing the principles of the "green" economy. Nițulescu emphasised that Romania is interested in long-term cooperation with Kazakhstan, which plays an important role in ensuring the country’s energy security.
Prospects for cooperation in the banking and financial sector, as well as securing KazMunayGas International’s interests in tax matters, were important topics of the talks with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Finance of Romania, Raduly Kalman.
During talks with Titus Corlățean, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Romanian Parliament’s Senate, the two sides agreed to intensify interparliamentary dialogue at the level of foreign affairs committees and friendship groups. It was underlined that the legislative bodies of both countries play an important role in developing not only political dialogue but also trade, economic and humanitarian relations.
In general, the talks in Bucharest confirmed the high level of bilateral interaction and laid the foundations for the establishment of a strategic partnership which will open up new niches for sustainable economic growth and the strengthening of the international positions of both countries.
For reference: Romania is Kazakhstan’s No.1 trade and investment partner in the region of Central and South-Eastern Europe, ranking 5th in Europe and 10th in the world among all trading partners. Trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Romania for 2024 amounted to 2.92 billion US dollars (exports - 2.78 billion, imports - 138 million), which is 1.6% more than in 2023 (2.87 billion dollars). Gross inflow of investments from Romania into the economy of Kazakhstan - 1.57 billion dollars (from 2005 to Q3 2023). There are about 40 companies with Romanian participation in Kazakhstan, and 35 legal entities with Kazakh capital in Romania.
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