PM Nawaz leaves for Kazakhstan

ISLAMABAD:

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will pay a two-day official visit to Kazakhstan on Tuesday and discuss with its leadership ways to boost their bilateral ties.

During the visit from August 25, at the invitation of the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Abishevich Nazarbayev, a number of agreements and MoUs are expected to be signed between Pakistan and the world’s largest landlocked country.

The premier will take along a high-level delegation to the Central Asian country that borders both China and Russia and is rich in oil and gas. The Pakistani delegation will also hold meetings with Prime Minister Karim Massimov, a statement from the Foreign Office said.

Pakistan was among the first few countries that recognised and established diplomatic relations with Kazakhstan after its independence in December 1991 following the dismemberment of Soviet Union.

PM Nawaz's visit to Kazakhstan is reflective of his vision to enhance and strengthen Pakistan's relations with Central Asian Republics, the statement said. In May this year the premier had visited Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan to push for gas and electricity deals respectively.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 25^th, 2015.