Central Asian foreign ministers convened to reinforce regional cooperation and unity
Foreign Ministers of Central Asian states convened ahead of the sixth consultative meeting of the heads of state of Central Asia on Aug. 9 to review prospects for deepening regional cooperation and further development of five-sided interaction, reported the Kazakh Foreign Ministry’s press service.
Kazakh Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu emphasized that the combined GDP of Central Asian countries now reaches nearly $450 billion, with mutual trade growing by 80% to $11 billion in the last five years. He highlighted the establishment of regional cooperation mechanisms, including parliaments, Security Councils, and industry departments, as well as the initiation of the Dialogue of Women Leaders.
Nurtleu noted that this year marked significant progress in cooperation, drawing international interest and support. Kazakhstan, as chair, has actively worked to enhance the consultative meetings, which included various high-level engagements for the first time.
“In this regard, I express my gratitude for the support of Kazakhstan’s initiatives and fruitful joint work on the preparation of a number of documents in industry, energy, transport, and logistics,” he said.(Source:astanatimes)
