Kazakhstan-Iran-Utembayev /POL/
Tehran, Astana maintain strategic relationship: envoy
Tehran, Dec 16, IRNA - Today marks the 16th anniversary of the
Republic of Kazakhstan.
As a Eurasian country Kazakhstan is considered as a bridge between
the West and the East. It is located between the two giant states of
Russia in the west and China in the east and the vast country is
gifted with abundant oil reserves.
Since independence, Kazakhstan has taken great steps toward
economic development. It has experienced a 10 percent economic growth
in 2007 with 7,000 dollars per capita income.
Iran enjoys close cultural, religious, and historical relations
with the Central Asian republics including Kazakhstan.
The Islamic Republic was among the first countries which
recognized Kazakhstan's independence and establish diplomatic ties
with the country.
In an interview with the Tehran Times, Kazakh ambassador to Iran,
Yerik Utembayev, said Kazakhstan and Iran will maintain a strategic
relationship and assessed the prospects of economic relations between
the two countries as promising.
"The prospect of Tehran-Astana economic relations especially in
oil and gas fields is bright, and Iran and Kazakhstan will maintain a
strategic relationship," Utembayev stated.
He assessed the current value of economic ties between the two
countries at 2.9 billion dollars which is expected to rise to 10
billion dollars annually in the future.
During the Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev visit to Tehran
for the Caspian Sea summit on October 16 an agreement was signed
between Iran, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan for constructing a railroad
connecting the three countries.
"We (the two countries) have great potential for cooperation.
Kazakhstan plans to build a refinery and a silo in northern Iran; and
Iran also plans to build a steel plant in Kazakhstan with the
capacity of 1 million tons per year."
The ambassador said achieving an annual 10 billion trade ties is
not farfetched as the two countries have great potential for
cooperation.
"We plan to increase oil swap with Iran," he told the Tehran
Times.
Kazakhstan will take over the presidency of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in 2010.
Kazakhstan is the first Muslim country which will assume the
presidency of the 56-member body. It is a multicultural and
religiously tolerant society.
"About 130 nationalities with 45 different religions live
peacefully in Kazakhstan," Utembayev noted.
The Central Asian republic has so far hosted two religious
conferences with the participation of world religious leaders and it
is preparing to hold the third religious congress in 2009.
"One of the reasons behind electing Kazakhstan as the OSCE
president was that the country has made cultural developments."
Since independence, Kazakhstan has received 70 billion dollars
foreign investment, the ambassador said, adding the figure account
for 70 percent of the whole foreign investment attracted by the
Central Asian countries.
He went on to say that the World Bank has convinced twenty
countries that Kazakhstan is a safe place for investment.
Utembayev said his country is among the first 50 countries in the
world with a high economic growth.
"Under the leadership of Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan has
succeeded to take great steps toward economic and cultural
development," the Kazakh envoy to Tehran pointed out.
Kazakhstan has drafted a 23-year outlook plan which will end in
2030.
"The core of the plan is a structural governmental reform which
follows the example of successful countries.
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::IRNA No.011 16/12/2007 10:23 --End
