Turkey will continue to support the sovereignty, stability and prosperity of Kazakhstan, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Noting that Kazakhstan has successfully made great development leaps in the past three decades, and has become an esteemed and responsible member of the international community, the ministry said the country has also enhanced bilateral cooperation with Turkey.
“Turkey will continue to support the sovereignty, stability and prosperity of Kazakhstan in terms of bilateral ties, and also in terms of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) and other regional and global organizations,” the ministry said.
Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Turkey also hailed ties between the two countries, saying that relations between the two countries are not only historical and deep but also multi-faceted.
During the initial years of Kazakhstan's independence, Turkey provided it with economic, moral and diplomatic support, which it will never forget, Abzal Saparbekuly told reporters at an event held at his country's embassy in the capital Ankara on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Kazakhstan.
Successful undertakings of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), Turkish language and cultural center the Yunus Emre Institute and the joint Turkish-Kazakh Hoca Ahmet Yesevi University strengthen cultural ties, and scholarships given to Kazakh students to study at Turkish universities play an important role in improving cultural relations, Saparbekuly said.
As for commercial relations between the two countries, he pointed out that Turkey is among the biggest investors and trade partners of Kazakhstan.
Saparbekuly also praised the Turkish-Kazakh cooperation in the transportation and defense sectors and noted that a series of negotiations are presently underway to further the cooperation in these fields.
Also touching on the unrest that swept the country in January, he called it a "tragic event" which started as peaceful demonstrations but quickly turned into terrorist acts.
Saparbekuly reiterated that Kazakhstan understands the problems its citizens face and remains adamant to develop economic and political solutions for them.
"We are working on mending the inequality in wealth distribution as well as increasing citizens' participation in the state apparatus and politics," he noted.
Saparbekuly also stressed that the country appreciates the importance of a transparent and efficient public administration and accordingly takes steps.
He furthermore remarked that the government is seriously struggling to eliminate corruption in the country, which has caused much disturbance among citizens.
Turkey has sought closer ties with Turkic-speaking Central Asian states such as Kazakhstan since the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991.
In 2009, Turkey and Kazakhstan signed a “Strategic Partnership Agreement” which resulted in Turkey becoming one of the most important political and economic partners of Kazakhstan in the region.
Bilateral relations between the two countries include various aspects such as trade, investment, culture, tourism, health, education and military issues, all of which are fields of cooperation developed on the basis of mutual benefit.
