Foreign ministers of Kazakhstan and Belarus outline ways to further expand cooperation
Kazakhstan's Foreign Minister Yermek Kosherbayev met with his Belarusian counterpart Maxim Ryzhenkov, who arrived in Kazakhstan on his first official visit, Qazinform News Agency learned from the press service of MFA.
The sides discussed the current issues of cooperation in the political, trade and economic, and cultural-humanitarian spheres, as well as interaction between the two countries within international organizations and integration associations.
“Belarus is an important political and economic partner of Kazakhstan, and we attach great importance to the comprehensive strengthening of strategic relations with your country. Undoubtedly, the high level of interaction between Kazakhstan and Belarus is the result of the political will and the consistent course pursued by the leaders of both states to strengthen interstate ties,” said Minister Kosherbayev.
Particular attention was given to the measures aimed at increasing mutual trade turnover, investment, and industrial cooperation.
“In 2025, trade turnover between our countries increased by 30% and exceeded 1.2 billion US dollars. An important task is to consolidate this indicator and ensure its further growth. The resources of our economies have the necessary potential and reserves to achieve this,” Kosherbayev noted.
Kosherbayev informed his counterpart about the incentives and measures aimed at attracting foreign investment into Kazakhstan’s economy, as well as the activities of the Astana International Financial Centre, based on the best practices of leading global financial institutions.
Cooperation in the transit and transport sector was also among the priority areas. It was noted that rail freight transportation in January-February of the current year reached 1.1 million tons, which is 25% higher than in the same period of 2025.
In addition, Minister Kosherbayev highlighted Kazakhstan’s active work on exporting domestic digital solutions and invited Belarusian specialists to cooperate in areas such as digitalization and artificial intelligence.
The sides also exchanged views on current international and regional issues and reviewed preparations for upcoming events at the highest and high levels.
Yermek Kosherbayev emphasized that Minister Ryzhenkov’s first visit to Kazakhstan coincides with an important milestone in bilateral relations - the opening of the Consulate General of Belarus in Kazakhstan’s largest metropolis, Almaty, scheduled for April 15. He expressed confidence that this will contribute to the further development of Kazakhstan-Belarus relations.
At the end of the meeting, the sides reaffirmed their strong commitment to further strengthening and expanding mutually beneficial cooperation across the full spectrum of bilateral and multilateral ties.
As it was reported, in early February 2026, Chairman of the Kazakh Majilis Yerlan Koshanov undertook an official visit to Belarus, meeting with President Alexander Lukashenko, speaker of the House of Representatives Igor Segeenko, and Chairperson of the Council of the Republic Natalya Kochanova in Minsk.
