KABUL (Pajhwok): Afghan and Kazakh officials during separate meetings in Kabul agreed to enhance trade relations between the two countries and create necessary facilities in this regard.
Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin and his accompanying delegation, wrote MoFA spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi on his twitter page.
Muttaqi said Kazakhstan could benefit from Afghanistan in areas of trade and transit and its traders could avail good investment opportunities created in Afghanistan.
He expressed happiness that the trade volume between Afghanistan and Kazakhstan had increased and touched 900 million dollars mark in the past one year.
Muttaqi asked Serik Zhumangarin to provide necessary facilities to Afghan traders in the process of issuing visas in order to promote bilateral trade.
Serik Zhumangarin said the two countries enjoyed historic relations and Kazakhstan had never closed its embassy in Kabul even in difficult times.
He brought along a group of Kazakh businessmen to Kabul in order to expand trade relations between the two countries.
He also said his country had provided humanitarian aid to Afghanistan in the past and would continue to provide the same in the future.
The visiting dignitary said Afghanistan enjoyed a unique position in the region in terms of transit – a connecting point between Central and South Asia — and Kazakhstan was trying to connect Afghanistan to the region through railways and open up new trade routes.
Recently Kazakhstani companies have been working together with Afghanistan in the field of railways, he said, adding as the minister of trade, Serik Zhumangarin said his focus was on the region and increasing Afghanistan’s transit potential was in the interest of both sides.
He also promised to facilitate the process of issuing visas to Afghan businessmen in cooperation with the ministries of commerce and foreign affairs of Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, Serik Zhumangarin also met his Afghan counterpart Noruddin Azizi and discussed with him cooperation between the two countries.
They talked about strengthening of economic relations, transport facilities, railways, investments, and enhancing bilateral trade to three billion dollars, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry wrote on its twitter page.
Serik Zhumangarin also called on deputy prime minister for economic affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and both sides discussed topics ranging from political, economic, commercial, transit issues to railways and infrastructure development projects.
Baradar thanked Kazakhstan for its humanitarian assistance and said Kazakhstan had always assisted Afghanistan and had maintained good relations and ensured friendly relations on Afghanistan’s part.
He said Kazakhstan should accept the new diplomats from Afghanistan in order to further expand relations between the two countries.
Baradar said security had been ensured in Afghanistan, paving the way for investment in major projects such as the extension of railway networks.
Serik Zhumangarin said his country had good relations with Afghanistan throughout history and they would accept the new diplomats in the near future in order to bolster these relations.
He said the main purpose of their visit to Afghanistan was to develop business relations, to create a joint group for quick solution to trade related problems, to provide visa facilities to Afghan businessmen and to open bank branches in both countries.
Kazakhstan and Afghanistan bilateral trade value hit one billion dollars, showing a two-fold increase compared to the previous year, he said.
Both sides expressed the hope that such meetings should continue and that positive developments should be made for the common interests of both countries.
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