Mikhail Mishustin held talks with Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov.
Excerpts from the transcript:
Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov
Mikhail Mishutin holds talks with Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov
Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov
Mikhail Mishutin holds talks with Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov
Mikhail Mishustin with Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov
Mikhail Mishustin: Good afternoon, Mr Bektenov, friends. We are delighted to see you all at the House of Government of the Russian Federation. Welcome.
I warmheartedly remember our visit to Kazakhstan in late January, as well as my talks with you and the important meeting we had with President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Please convey my best regards and words of greeting from President of Russia Vladimir Putin to him.
Kazakhstan is an important partner of Russia in the Eurasian region. We highly value our brotherly and neighbourly relations and our alliance. Our governments ensure the clear and prompt implementation of decisions made by our leaders at the highest level.
Of course, strengthening our cooperation in trade and the economy is a priority for us. Our intergovernmental commission is working actively.
We call for promoting our interregional cooperation. About 70 percent of bilateral trade is ensured by direct provided by direct cooperation between the regions of Russia and Kazakhstan.
We are successfully implementing joint projects, in particular (as we have already discussed earlier today) in the energy sector, including peaceful atomic energy, as well as industry, high technology, and digital sphere. We are systemically working to develop our infrastructure and logistics, primarily along the North — South international transport corridor.
This year, we are holding traditional Days of Culture of Kazakhstan. We would like to take this opportunity to invite our Kazakhstani friends once again to take part in the Intervision international music competition, which will be held in Moscow.
In May, we will celebrate the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War together. It is a common sacred holiday for our fraternal nations. We carefully preserve the memory of the heroism of the frontline soldiers and home front workers and will pass it on to future generations of citizens of Russia and Kazakhstan.
Please, Mr Bektenov, you have the floor,
Olzhas Bektenov: Mr Mishustin.
First of all, let me thank you for the invitation to visit Moscow, for the warm welcome, hospitality and cordiality.
It is gratifying to note that the current year is traditionally rich in mutual visits and joint events at various levels. And I am sure that our today's meeting will be another step towards further deepening and expanding the allied relations between Kazakhstan and Russia.
Our countries have established an intensive political dialogue and stable economic, cultural and humanitarian ties.
This is primarily due, of course, to the trust-based relations between the leaders of our countries.
President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev attaches special importance to the development of relations with the Russian Federation.
The state visit by Vladimir Putin to Astana last year gave a serious impetus to further development of relations. Our governments are facing the task of building up trade between our countries, industrial cooperation and also fully implement all the agreements reached by our presidents. And increase the trade up to $30 billion. We are already close to this impressive amount.
Soon, as you have noted, we will celebrate the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. This is a special and important event for us, which deeply and inextricably binds our peoples and is a symbol of unity, cohesion and peace.
On the instructions
of the Presidents, we have developed and are implementing a plan of joint
cultural events to mark Victory Day, which will include about 40 events of various kinds. I am confident that they will contribute to further deepening
mutual understanding and preserving common historical memory.
Russia is among Kazakhstan’s main trade and economic partners. I have mentioned the trade turnover figures: trade is about to reach $28 billion, or three percent more as of last year. It is important to retain this pace and build up on it. We share a huge potential. We have areas to advance to together.
Mutual investment amounts grow steadily. Over the past 20 years, Russian investors have contributed $26 billion in direct investment to the Kazakhstani economy. Kazakhstani companies have invested about $9 billion into the Russian economy over the same period.
Over last year, Russian investment inflow increased by 32 percent to over $4 billion per year, the highest number in history. More than 23,000 companies with Russian participation, or almost 40 percent of all companies with foreign participation, operate successfully in Kazakhstan.
These figures are indicative of close interconnection of our economies and considerable opportunities for investment cooperation.
We are active in promoting industrial cooperation: we have 171 joint projects worth $48 billion with 45,000 new jobs in the offing. We work together on a large scale and very intensively. About 27 new projects for $8 billion and 8,000 new jobs are in the pipeline. It is a very good indicator.
The Intergovernmental Commission is very active, with our deputies solving problems on the operating level. I want to wish them further success in this work. Let them advance and coordinate their efforts.
By tradition, there is active cooperation between regions of our countries. In this regard, we attach much importance to the upcoming 21st Kazakhstan-Russia Inter-Regional Cooperation Forum that will be held in Uralsk, Kazakhstan, this autumn. This format has proved its efficiency. Many practical issues find a solution.
Mr Mushustin, I want to say once again that the Government of Kazakhstan has a good mind and is committed to work actively on intensifying and expanding economic relations with the Russian Federation.
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