Presidents of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan hold joint media briefing
In his speech, the Head of State stressed that he regards Sadyr Zhaparov’s first state visit as President of Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan as a manifestation of special respect for our country.
«Kyrgyzstan for us is an allied, good-neighborly, fraternal state and a reliable partner,» President of Kazakhstan said.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev emphasized the historical role of First President of Kazakhstan – Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev, who made an invaluable contribution to the development of relations between the two fraternal countries.
The Head of State expressed confidence that the outcomes of the talks will give a new impetus to the Kazakh-Kyrgyz strategic partnership, calling it symbolic that the visit of the Kyrgyz leader coincided with the 30th anniversary of the Independence of the two countries.
«Our interests are similar in the political, economic, humanitarian and military-technical spheres. About 180 documents have been signed between the two countries. Today, we adopted a Joint Statement and signed a number of important agreements. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan actively cooperate within the Eurasian Economic Union. Together, we are carrying out large-scale work to maintain stability and security in Central Asia,» President Tokayev said.
Kazakhstan President said that during the negotiations, issues of joint counteraction to coronavirus were considered. Kazakhstan affirmed its readiness to send the next batch of medical devices and medicines to the Kyrgyz people as humanitarian aid. In addition, he announced the provision of military and technical assistance to Kyrgyzstan’s armed forces.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted that Kazakhstan is one of the major trading partners, as well as one of the leading investors in Kyrgyzstan.
«Over the past 15 years, we have invested more than $1 billion in this country. Kazakh investors make a significant contribution to supporting key sectors of the Kyrgyz economy and improving the social situation. Special attention is paid to the creation of new jobs, the development of the manufacturing sector and the financial market. In this regard, we agreed to support and protect mutual investments,» President of Kazakhstan said.
President Tokayev spoke about the agreements aimed at reducing trade barriers, strengthening cooperation between the customs and tax authorities of the two countries, and introducing digital technologies into their work.
The Head of State also informed that in order to strengthen the export potential and expand ties between small and medium-sized businesses, the Kazakh delegation will pay a special visit to Kyrgyzstan in the near future.
Another important issue on the bilateral agenda is to increase the capacity at the Kazakh-Kyrgyz border in order to improve the conditions of movement of our citizens and trade flows.
«In this regard, measures are being taken to increase the capacity of border posts. One of the bright confirmations of this work is the modernization of the largest point «Kordai» (Akzhol). Comfortable conditions will be created for crossing the border. The equipment has been updated, an eight-lane highway has been built, and the passport control regime has been improved. All this would significantly increase the flow of passengers and transport between the two countries. Kazakhstan is ready to open this facility in the near future. According to the agreement, the Kyrgyz side will also complete the relevant work in the near future,» President Tokayev said.
Kazakhstan President also focused on the agreement reached on increasing cooperation in interregional cooperation. According to him, there is a need to hold the first Forum of Interregional Cooperation as soon as possible, as well as to create a trade and logistics center for the registration and processing of goods in the border zone.
Another subject of the talks was the discussion of water and energy cooperation.
«It is worth noting that our cooperation on the Shu and Talas river basins is an example for many countries today. We have a joint Commission on the use of water management of interstate structures. Kazakhstan annually provides financial assistance for the repair and operation of these facilities. Over the past ten years, we have allocated more than 1 billion tenge for this purpose. We will continue to work on this issue in a bilateral format, as well as with other partners in the region. As for the river issues, we need effective cooperation, only in this way can we avoid disagreements,» Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said.
In his speech, the Head of State also focused on the prospects of cultural and humanitarian cooperation.
«We agreed to hold cross-cultural days of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. A monument to Abai will be put in Bishkek, while in Nur-Sultan - monuments to Manas and Chingiz Aitmatov. In addition, we will join forces to research and promote the rich historical heritage of our peoples,» he informed.
Moreover, following the discussion, an agreement was reached to intensify contacts between the youth. The President spoke about his instruction to increase the quota for Kyrgyz students to enroll to universities in our country by 10 times and to increase the number of educational scholarships up to 50. He also informed about the proposal to consider opening a branch of one of the leading universities in Kazakhstan in Bishkek.
The leaders of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan exchanged views on regional and global agenda. According to President Tokayev, the parties reaffirmed the proximity of positions on most issues. They also noted the urgency for further developing the format of Consultative Meetings of the Central Asia’s heads of state. Kazakhstan President expressed gratitude to Sadyr Zhaparov for supporting Kazakhstan’s initiative to strengthen the CICA’s potential.
Concluding his speech, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted that the negotiations reaffirmed the mutual desire to further strengthen the ties of friendship, trust and good-neighborliness between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
«Our states and peoples are close to each other. This is a well-known fact. The task of the heads of state is to turn bilateral relations into an exemplary model of cooperation. Today's negotiations were aimed at solving this task. The exchange of views was very useful and fruitful. We identified the main areas of bilateral cooperation and discussed strengthening the dialogue within regional and international structures. We agreed to settle any issues of our cooperation in a constructive manner and in an operational mode, taking into account the fundamental interests of the fraternal peoples of the two countries. With full confidence we can say that the state visit of President Sadyr Zhaparov of Kyrgyzstan was crowned with success,» Kassym-Jomart Tokayev concluded.