On the eve of the visit of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Azerbaijan in Nur-Sultan, the first meeting of the Kazakh-Azerbaijani Expert Council, organized by the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of Kazakhstan, was held.
The meeting was held with the personal participation of the leadership of the Center for Analysis of International Relations of Azerbaijan, deputies and representatives of state bodies, as well as heads and experts of leading analytical centers of the two countries.
The agenda of the meeting focused on topical issues of further development of cooperation between the countries, including increasing the effectiveness of cooperation in trade and transport communications, as well as expanding the role of expert and analytical cooperation.
Thus, Yerkin Tukumov, Director of KazISI under the President of Kazakhstan, stressed the need to strengthen scientific and expert cooperation in order to develop specific practical proposals for the leadership and government agencies of the two countries.
“Our task within the framework of the Kazakh-Azerbaijani Expert Council is to develop such recommendations for the leadership of our countries that will have an effect in practice.
Azerbaijan is a natural ally for Kazakhstan, one of the main players of the Turkic world, a partner in the strategically important South Caucasus region. The issues of diversifying the economy and expanding transport and communication potential are among the key ones for our countries. This creates good opportunities for cooperation. In my opinion, another important issue is the lack of knowledge about each other. Our countries need to use all the levers of public diplomacy and organize regular joint events in the cultural and humanitarian sphere!”.
Chairman of the Board of the Center for Analysis of International Relations of AzerbaijanFarid Shafiyev noted that for 30 years Nur-Sultan and Baku have managed to strengthen bilateral relations to the level of strategic partnership and have great potential for further growth of cooperation:
“I wanted to note the importance of the development of the Middle Corridor. The geopolitical situation allows increasing trade turnover. Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan should strengthen their potential as a transport hub. Steps are already being taken to simplify various bureaucratic procedures.
Speaking of transport links, we are not just talking about physical links, we are also talking about links in a broader sense, including fiber-optic links, transportation of energy resources, etc.”.
Aydos Sarym, Member of the Majilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, also emphasized the relevance of developing cooperation in the practical dimension, including the need to enshrine them in law soon:
“The new reality requires from the lawmakers of our two countries a completely new dynamics, a new style of work, proactive and anticipatory in nature. Parliaments must be ready, on the one hand, to promptly consider and ratify projects to build new infrastructure and create new transport corridors, and on the other hand, to exercise public and parliamentary control over the effective implementation of the adopted agreements”.
Member of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan Elshad Mirbashir oglu expressed confidence in the success of further cooperation between the two countries:
“The upcoming visit of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan will certainly play a historic role in strengthening the strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan at a new stage. Special attention will be paid to intensifying trade and economic, transport and logistics, cultural and humanitarian cooperation”.
In his speech, the deputy of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan Rasim Musabekov stressed that there are no controversial points in the brotherly relations between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, which provides an opportunity for successful cooperation in any direction. One of promising directions is shipbuilding, production of oil production equipment and laying of pipelines.
TALAP Center for Applied Research Director Rahim Oshakbayev called to expand the format of cooperation between the two countries: “Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, as the countries with the largest investment potential, could go beyond bilateral cooperation and create a model of tandem leadership in the region.
I would also stress the importance of new technological modes and digital ecosystems. In this context, MFCA could make an offer to Azerbaijani companies to use the ecosystem. And our venture capital companies would be interested to study the experience of Azerbaijani startups”.
During the discussion, Fariz Ismailzade, Vice Rector of the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy, noted the prospects for cooperation between the two countries in the educational sphere, including the development of educational double degree programs, organization of short-term visits of scientists and researchers, as well as joint publication of scientific papers.
In general, the meeting identified a number of key areas of contact that could significantly enhance the mutually beneficial and productive cooperation between the two countries. Along with this, the parties agreed to continue to strengthen cooperation in the expert-analytical sphere with the second meeting to be held in Baku.
