During the negotiations between Vassilenko and the leadership of the Slovak Government, the state and prospects of bilateral co-operation were discussed.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Roman Vassilenko visited the capital of Slovakia to hold meetings with the leadership of the Government and Parliament, which confirmed the mutual commitment to bring cooperation to a qualitatively new level. In Bratislava, the Deputy Minister held meetings with Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Defence Robert Kaliňák, Deputy Prime Minister Peter Kmec, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council Marián Kéry, State Secretaries of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Ministry of Economy Marek Eštok and Kamil Šaško, as well as the Chairman of the Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry Peter Mihók.
During the negotiations between Vassilenko and the leadership of the Slovak Government, the state and prospects of bilateral co-operation were discussed. The mutual interest of Astana and Bratislava in expanding political, trade and economic, cultural and humanitarian cooperation was stressed, which will be facilitated by the organisation of mutual visits at various levels. Particular attention was paid to the issues of quality preparation of the 10th meeting of the Kazakh-Slovak Intergovernmental Commission on Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation and Business Forum, scheduled for 3-4 October 2024 in Astana (co-chairs of the Intergovernmental Commission – First Vice-Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan N. Sharbiyev and State Secretary of the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic V. Šimoňák).
During the next round of consultations between the foreign ministries of Kazakhstan and Slovakia, Vassilenko and Eštok noted the importance of the strategic partnership between Kazakhstan and the European Union, emphasising the prospects offered by the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Kazakhstan and the EU.
Kazakh diplomat expressed gratitude to Slovak colleagues for supporting the initiative to simplify the EU visa regime for citizens of Kazakhstan. Also discussed were issues of cooperation and mutual support within the UN, OSCE and other international organisations. Expressing satisfaction with the state of bilateral ties, the parties identified plans to develop interdepartmental and interregional ties, as well as business, cultural and educational exchanges.
At the meeting with Šaško, the positive dynamics of mutual trade was noted, the volume of which increased by 13.3% in 2023 to 138.9 million US dollars. The sides discussed cooperation in energy, transport, machine building, defence industry, IT sector and agriculture. An agreement was reached to fill the agenda of the 10th meeting of the Commission with the topics of energy, transcontinental transport cooperation and new freight routes between Europe and Asia, as well as education, personnel training and water resources management.
During the talks between Vassilenko and Kéry, the parties outlined the prospects of strengthening the inter-parliamentary dialogue by intensifying the practice of mutual visits of the elected representatives of the two countries. In his turn, Kéry highly appreciated the successful course of Kazakhstan’s leadership towards systemic political modernisation, strengthening of parliamentarianism and multiparty system.
As part of the visit, the Deputy Minister took part in a business forum organised by the Council of Slovak Exporters together with the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Slovakia. The diplomat made a presentation of the potential of Kazakhstan’s economy and new tasks set by the Head of State to the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The economic growth of Kazakhstan in the current year, as well as significant investment opportunities of the Republic of Kazakhstan along with broad prospects for bilateral cooperation were noted. During the event, Deputy Minister held separate meetings with the heads of the Slovak Export-Import Bank and leading Slovak companies such as AEN, Adrian, Vzduchotorg, BAUGRUP, Eucos, HDTS and others to discuss specific business co-operation projects.
Deputy Minister also took part in a roundtable discussion on President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s annual State of the Nation Address “Fair Kazakhstan: Law and Order, Economic Growth, Public Optimism” with the participation of representatives of analytical institutions, political scientists, experts and journalists. Kazakh diplomat informed about new tasks of political and socio-economic development of the Republic of Kazakhstan set by the Head of State.
During the discussion, Andrej Žiarovský, Director for Strategic Development and International Projects at the SR Research Institute of Atomic Energy, commenting on the upcoming referendum in Kazakhstan, suggested sharing experience in the nuclear power industry and training specialists. Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the SR Urban Rusnák and ex-Ambassador of Slovakia in Kazakhstan Peter Juza assessed the reforms announced by the Head of State to support small and medium-sized businesses, in the field of tax policy, measures to increase the income of Kazakhstanis and other important initiatives of the leadership of Kazakhstan. It was noted that the referendum is an expression of the free will of the people of Kazakhstan and an important step to strengthen the culture of national dialogue and practical implementation of the concept of ‘hearing state’. Special attention at the round table was paid to the theme of Kazakhstan‘s contribution to global and regional security.
Within the framework of ‘sports diplomacy’ Vassilenko visited the hockey match Kazakhstan-Slovakia and met with members of the Slovak national archery team, who will participate in the 5th World Nomad Games in Astana on 8-13 September 2024. The diplomat expressed his gratitude to the athletes for their participation in the Games and wished them success in the upcoming competitions.
According to the State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the volume of bilateral trade in 2023 was 138.9 million US dollars (+13.3%). This includes exports – 2.2 million dollars (+13.3%), imports – 136.7 million dollars (+21.3%). There are 26 companies with Slovak capital registered in Kazakhstan. For the period from 2005 to the first quarter of 2024, the gross inflow of direct investments from Slovakia to Kazakhstan amounted to 21.1 million US dollars.
