By Naveed Miraj and Shahid Qureshi
ISLAMABAD: Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Pakistan Yerzhan Kistafin has vowed to support Pakistan in all its endeavours within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) framework, adding his country is excited about the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization Heads of Government meeting in October in Islamabad.
Rising Kazakhstan: Agenda for Building Regional Cooperation
The Ambassador expressed these remarks at the Conference on “Rising Kazakhstan: Agenda for building regional cooperation” which was organized by Institute of Regional Studies Islamabad on Tuesday. He said that this gathering offers them an exceptional platform to engage in meaningful dialogue on Kazakhstan’s progress, while also highlighting the significance of fostering cooperation with Pakistan, which is a key partner for Kazakhstan in South Asia.
He said that the leadership of his country, on multiple occasions, has emphasized that Islamabad holds critical importance in Kazakhstan’s foreign policy, particularly in South Asia. He added that the development of strong and mutually beneficial ties with Pakistan is of principal importance to them, and they see enormous potential for cooperation across a wide range of sectors.
The Ambassador expressed confidence that their partnership with Pakistan will grow stronger, fostering mutual understanding and cooperation for the benefit of peoples of the two countries as well as for the region.
He said that Kazakhstan’s national agenda hold key importance not only for their country’s internal development but also for enhancing cooperation in the broader Central and South Asian region. He added that Pakistan and Kazakhstan can extend their cooperation in business development, energy security, water resource management, and environmental protection to further deepening their ties.
He maintained that Kazakhstan and Pakistan are already holding active talks on several dimensions, with the goal of intensifying cooperation and mutually benefiting from each other’s experiences.
He said that they believed bilateral cooperation will not only strengthen the bonds between their two nations but also contribute to greater regional stability and prosperity.
National Agenda of Kazakhstan
He also shared his views about national agenda of Kazakhstan and said that President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in his recent address emphasized the key goals of his nation: sustainable socio-economic progress, the realization of citizens’ potential, and the enhancement of national well-being.
He added that the President talked about political and social reforms, economic reforms and development, enhancing the investment climate and improving business conditions, and tax reforms. He added that President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also discussed infrastructure and digitalization, gas infrastructure, water sector, improving the environmental situation and foreign policy during his speech.
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President of the Institute of Regional studies, Ambassador Jauhar Saleem, Pakistan Minister of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal Chaudhry, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of foreign affairs of Pakistan, Ambassador Ahmad Naseem Warraich, Vice-Chancellor of the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Dr. Nadeem ul Haque and Professor Dr. Shabir Ahmad Khan from the Area Study Centre of the University of Peshawar also attended the conference.
