FM Janelidze Meets Kazakh Leaders, Discusses Deepening Ties

Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze is visiting Kazakhstan on May 16-17.  He met Kazakh Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev, Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov and other officials, and discussed bilateral cooperation.

While meeting PM Sagintayev, the sides hailed “successful cooperation” between Georgia and Kazakhstan in trade, economy, tourism, transport, and other spheres as well as joint participation in international transit projects. The two ministers also expressed their readiness to support bilateral investment projects, and expand business relations.

According to PM Sagintayev’s press office, Kazakh companies are ready to supply electric locomotives for the Georgian Railways, as well as to provide Kazakh buses for Tbilisi bus fleet.

To strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries, Foreign Ministers of Georgia and Kazakhstan signed a cooperation program for 2018-2019, with FM Abdrakhmanov stressing that his country’s determination “to develop and deepen relations with Georgia remains unchanged.”

“We consider Georgia as our reliable partner in the region and the international arena,” Minister Abdrakhmanov underscored. He said although the trade turnover is increasing between Georgia and Kazakhstan, but it has not yet exposed the full potential.

Mikheil Janelidze noted that at the end of May the Georgian trade mission will visit Kazakhstan to explore bilateral trade opportunities.

“We consider Kazakhstan as a very important partner in the region and we would like to make sure that the Kazakh business also considers Georgia as a very important gateway to the European market,” Minister Janelidze stated.

As part of his visit to Astana, Georgian Foreign Minister also met with the Chairman of Mazhilis (lower house) of the Parliament, Nurlan Nigmatulin, and the Chairman of the Senate, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, addressed the guests of the event dedicated to the centennial of the Georgian Democratic Republic (1918-1921), and attended the Astana economic Forum, which was opened by President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Georgia’s trade turnover with Kazakhstan, according to the State Statistics Office Geostat, stood at USD 81.07 million in 2017, with exports at USD 51.44 million (USD 39.81 million in 2016) and imports at USD 29.63 million (USD 22.29 million in 2016).

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