Kazakhstan, Slovenia celebrate 25 years of diplomatic ties
In a quarter of a century of friendship and cooperation, our countries have created favorable conditions for the progressive development of political dialogue, trade-economic and cultural-humanitarian cooperation.
An important milestone in the expansion of cooperation between the two countries was the first official visit of the President of Kazakhstan Mr. Nursultan Nazarbayev to Slovenia in May 2002. The visits of the President of the Republic of Slovenia Mr. Milan Kučan in September 2002 as well as the President of the Republic of Slovenia Dr. Danilo Türk in November 2009 to Kazakhstan, provided significant impetus to strengthen bilateral cooperation.
The relations between the foreign offices and the specialized agencies of the two countries are expanding. In 2017 the first political consultations between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan and Slovenia were held in Astana.
Parliamentary diplomacy also contributes to strengthening bilateral cooperation. The legislative bodies of both countries have established corresponding cooperation groups.
The two States closely cooperate within the framework of the UN, the OSCE and other international organizations and share common views on key issues on the international agenda.
The relations in the trade and economic field between the two countries are developing consistently. The promising areas of cooperation are pharmaceuticals, smart and green technologies, tourism, including sports and medical tourism, transport infrastructure, etc.
Effective mechanism in the field of bilateral economic cooperation is the Kazakh-Slovenian intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation. The 3rd meeting of Commission was held in 2016 in Ljubljana.
Kazakhstan and Slovenia also share the historical memory of the fight against fascism during the Second World War.
In Slovenia, in the city of Trnovo a Memorial to Soviet soldiers is installed, where the names of the fallen Kazakhstan soldiers are immortalized on commemorative plaques. There is a grave of an unknown Kazakh soldier in the village of Povir, who died in the battle during the Second World War. The Kazakh side is grateful to the residents of Povir for having preserved the memory of the soldier for more than 70 years.
Honorary Consulates of Kazakhstan in the cities of Maribor and Nova Gorica were opened in Slovenia. They provide active support to the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in carrying out cultural and sport events and to develop contacts between the universities of both countries. The "Embassy of Arts of Kazakhstan" was opened in the framework of the International Art Circle symposium "Art Circle" in the Primorska region of Slovenia - Goriška Brda.
The Honorary Consulate of Slovenia was opened in Almaty. It provides valuable support and assistance to the promotion of economic and cultural relations between the two countries
As shown by the results of the 25 years of cooperation, Kazakhstan and Slovenia will continue to further deepen and develop bilateral cooperation in the fields of political dialogue, trade, economy, cultural and humanitarian sphere.