Erzhan Kazykhan, Deputy Chief of Staff of the President of Kazakhstan - Special Envoy of the President for International Cooperation, paid a working visit to the United Kingdom, El.kz cites MFA.
During the visit, he held talks with the top officials of the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, senior officials of the Cabinet Office, chairmen of committees of the British Parliament, members of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Kazakhstan, the chairman of the British-Kazakh Society and representatives of the business community. During the meetings, the present state of bilateral political, trade-economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation was discussed, as well as current issues of international development.
At a separate in-depth meeting with representatives of British think tanks, participants exchanged views on the prospects of Kazakh-British relations and on the issues of the international and regional agenda.
Erzhan Kazykhan highlighted the importance of further strengthening the partnership between Astana and London, as well as significant potential in expanding trade and investment cooperation. The President's Special Envoy briefed the FCDO leadership, British MPs and the expert community on implementation of the comprehensive political and economic reforms in Kazakhstan launched by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
For its part, the British side stressed that Kazakhstan is a key strategic partner of the UK in Central Asia and expressed its intention to further strengthen Kazakh-British relations. In addition, representatives of the British government and parliamentarians emphasized the relevance of political modernization in Kazakhstan and expressed their support of the Head of State’s reform agenda.
In conclusion of the visit, the both parties agreed to continue high level bilateral contacts.