Today, in the city of Khankendi, Azerbaijan, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar Akhund, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, held a meeting with the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed political, economic, and trade-related issues between Afghanistan and Kazakhstan.
Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Baradar Akhund described Kazakhstan as an important and reliable regional partner for Afghanistan and welcomed the appointment of a special envoy by Kazakhstan for Afghanistan as a constructive development. He expressed appreciation to the Republic of Kazakhstan for its support of Afghanistan in international forums.
The Deputy Prime Minister stated that Afghanistan constitutes a key transit corridor for Kazakhstan to the Middle East and South Asia and could also serve as a link connecting Kazakhstan to Europe. He encouraged Kazakhstan to take advantage of existing opportunities in the areas of investment, trade, railway infrastructure development, and transit cooperation.
With the aim of increasing bilateral trade volume to USD 3 billion, the Deputy Prime Minister underscored the significance of concluding an agricultural health and quarantine agreement for agricultural products, facilitating visa issuance for Afghan nationals, and enabling Afghan banks to open accounts in Kazakhstan’s Zaman and Freedom Banks. He assured that Afghan financial institutions are prepared to implement such arrangements.
On the matter of enhancing bilateral trade, the Deputy Prime Minister noted that Afghanistan has initiated the creation of an operational company to manage imports and exports via rail, which will be introduced to Kazakhstan in the near future. He mentioned that a draft agreement on international freight transport has been prepared and shared, and that active efforts are underway to reduce transit fees on goods transported through Afghanistan. Additionally, he referred to a draft multilateral cooperation agreement in the industrial, commercial, and transport sectors involving Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Afghanistan, highlighting the importance of Kazakhstan’s participation.
Following this, the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan addressed the meeting. He affirmed that Kazakhstan maintains positive relations with Afghanistan and announced that the Kazakh Foreign Minister would soon visit Kabul to further strengthen bilateral relations.
The Prime Minister of Kazakhstan declared that his country will invest USD 500 million in the Torghundi–Herat railway project in Afghanistan. He also expressed interest in investing in Afghanistan’s mining sector and conveyed readiness to increase imports of Afghan fruits and to facilitate Afghanistan’s exports through Kazakh territory.
He added that Kazakhstan ranks among the ten countries with the highest trade volume with Afghanistan and reaffirmed Kazakhstan’s commitment to further expanding commercial relations.
