On April 24, Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu held talks with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron, who was in Astana with an official visit.
The ministers signed the historic Strategic Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Kazakhstan and the UK that is aimed at strengthening bilateral relations in key sectors, such as foreign policy and security, trade and investment, protection of intellectual property, energy and raw materials partnership, transportation, environment protection and climate change, banking and financial services, employment and social policy, science and education.
According to Minister Nurtleu, “this comprehensive agreement will be a significant step in taking political, trade and investment relations between Astana and London to new horizons… We believe our strong and mutually beneficial strategic partnership will continue to strengthen in all areas, from energy to rare metals, from ecology to education.”
Foreign Secretary Cameron noted that the UK pays great attention to developing cooperation with Kazakhstan as the key partner in Central Asia. He also expressed the readiness of London to deepen its ties with Astana.
A number of bilateral documents in the sphere of healthcare and transport as well as MoUs on opening a branch of Queen’s University Belfast in Almaty and launching Kazakh language courses at Oxford University were also concluded during the visit.
On the same day, Foreign Secretary Cameron was received by Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who noted the importance of this visit to Kazakhstan for giving additional impetus to the development of bilateral relations.
“We greatly value the dynamic of mutually beneficial cooperation with Great Britain — our important strategic partner. Taking this opportunity, I would like to commend the signing today of the Strategic Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. I am confident that this comprehensive document will definitely give a fresh boost to our multifaceted bilateral agenda,” the Kazakh president stated.
Cameron recalled his first visit to Kazakhstan as the UK Prime Minister.
“I came here 11 years ago to start the strategic dialog. It was great today with the Foreign Minister to sign the Strategic Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. I think we look across the partnership in energy, education, business and cultural sectors and developing people to people change,” the UK Foreign Secretary said.
Trade between Kazakhstan and the UK in 2023 reached 1.2 million US dollars. There are around 600 companies and joint ventures with British capital in Kazakhstan. The UK is among the top 10 foreign investors in Kazakhstan. Last year, Kazakhstan’s economy attracted 795 million in FDI from the UK and over 17 billion in total since 2005.
Photo: Kazakhstan Foreign Ministry
