Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov held talks with the Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers – Head of the Presidential Administration of Kyrgyzstan Akylbek Japarov. The meeting was held in Almaty on the eve of the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council.

As Alikhan Smailov noted, Kyrgyzstan is a strategic partner and brotherly state for Kazakhstan.

"Thanks to the political will of our leaders today Kazakh-Kyrgyz relations are at a qualitatively new level," the Prime Minister said.

Head of the Government also noted the progressive development of trade and economic interaction between the countries. Only for 11 months of last year mutual trade increased by 12% and reached $1.3 billion. At the same time, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic continue to work together to bring the volume of trade turnover to $2 billion.

"This is facilitated by the effective operation of bilateral cooperation mechanisms, such as the Intergovernmental Council and the Interregional Cooperation Forum. The Government of Kazakhstan is ready to further support the Kazakh-Kyrgyz strategic partnership in all directions," Alikhan Smailov emphasized. 

For his part, Akylbek Zhaparov noted that the current relations between Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan confirm the high level of political dialog.

"Every year the volume of mutual trade and investment is growing, and business, scientific and cultural ties are intensifying. The Intergovernmental Council discusses common strategic goals, conceptual approaches and directions of long-term development of Kyrgyz-Kazakh cooperation. Active interaction between our countries is carried out on multilateral platforms," he said.

Akylbek Japarov emphasized the interest of the Kyrgyz side in further deepening of allied relations with Kazakhstan, based on mutual trust and understanding.

During the meeting, the heads of government considered a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation, including in trade and economic and oil and gas sectors.

In addition, the parties agreed to work out as soon as possible the opening of an additional checkpoint for cargo vehicles on the Kazakhstan-Kyrgyz border, as well as to strengthen cooperation in the water and energy sector.

#Alikhan Smailov #The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan #Eurasian Intergovernmental Council #Trade and economic cooperation