First Deputy PM of Kazakhstan met with Vice Premier of China Zhang Gaoli

"China has always been and will be one of the top priorities of our foreign policy. The relationship between the two countries reached a new level of comprehensive strategic character. The key to our overall success was the constructive political dialogue at the highest level," Bakytzhan Sagintayev said in the beginning of the meeting, Kazinform refers to primeminister.kz.

First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan stressed that the President ‘s New Economic Policy "Nurly Zhol" and the initiative of the President Xi Jinping "One Belt, One Road" are harmoniously complementary, opening up new prospects of mutually beneficial partnership for the countries.

During the talks, the sides discussed issues of bilateral cooperation. In particular, the transfer of production capacity from China to Kazakhstan, cooperation within the framework of large-scale transport projects, cooperation with regard to trans-boundary water resources, energy, agriculture, as well as the opportunity to increase exports of traditional Kazakh products (copper, ferrochrome, iron ore pellets, rolled steel) to China.

Taking into account the high economic and investment potential of highly developed eastern and southeastern provinces of China, as well as the growing economic importance of Xinjiang, Kazakhstan offers to create a forum of interregional cooperation of Kazakhstan and China.

Bakytzhan Sagintayev and Zhang Gaoli praised the breakthrough of countries in the cultural and humanitarian cooperation. Currently, Chinese universities train about 12 thousand students from Kazakhstan. In 2015-2016, China provided 59 grants for Kazakhstan.