ISLAMABAD (MNN); Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday on a two-day official visit aimed at further strengthening bilateral relations between Pakistan and Kazakhstan.
President Tokayev was received at Rawalpindi’s Nur Khan Airbase by President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. A 21-gun salute was presented in his honour, according to state-run Radio Pakistan.
The visiting president is accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising senior cabinet members and top government officials. Footage released by his office showed Islamabad streets decorated with Kazakhstan’s national flags to welcome the guest.
In a statement issued earlier, the President’s Secretariat said President Zardari will confer the Nishan-i-Pakistan, the country’s highest civilian award, on the presidents of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, with the Uzbek president expected to visit Pakistan later this month.
The Foreign Office said President Tokayev will hold meetings with President Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and will also address the Pakistan-Kazakhstan Business Forum.
The FO noted that the visit offers a timely opportunity for both sides to conduct a comprehensive review of bilateral relations and explore new avenues of cooperation. Discussions are expected to focus on trade, logistics, regional connectivity, people-to-people contacts, as well as collaboration at regional and international forums.
Officials view the visit as mutually beneficial. For Pakistan, it supports Islamabad’s ambition to position itself as a land bridge linking Central and South Asia and beyond. For Kazakhstan, it provides an opportunity to diversify international trade amid regional uncertainties following the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Meanwhile, Kazakh Minister for Science and Higher Education Sayasat Nurbek is already in Pakistan. On Monday, eight memoranda of understanding were signed between higher education institutions of the two countries to promote joint research, faculty and student exchanges, collaborative academic programmes and capacity-building initiatives.
As part of the educational cooperation, Kazakhstan study centres were inaugurated at three public sector universities in Islamabad.
Earlier, during the visit of then Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Murat Nurtleu in September, Pakistan and Kazakhstan had signed an Action Plan of Cooperation to further enhance bilateral ties.
