President of Kazakhstan partaking in ASEM summit

After the opening ceremony, the leaders will attend a Gala Dinner at the Royal Museums of Art and History in the presence of King Philippe of Belgium.

The leaders of 21 Asian and 30 European countries, and two institutional partners (EU and ASEAN), are participating in the two-day summit. This year's discussion will focus on the theme "Global Partnership for Global Challenges".

The summit program consists of two plenary sessions dedicated to financial and economic issues and global challenges, as well as an informal session to exchange views on regional and international issues.

The summit will primarily focus on strengthening the forum and developing cooperation between Asia and Europe in the fields of trade expansion and investment, interconnectedness, sustainable development, and climate change.

The meeting participants will also discuss the issues of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the search for possible ways to tackle the present-day security challenges such as terrorism, cybersecurity, and illegal migration.

It should be mentioned that Kazakhstan is the only Central Asian country, which is a member of the Asia-Europe Meeting. ASEM partner countries account for 65% of the global GDP, 55% of world trade, and nearly two-thirds of the world's population.

Photo courtesy of aseminfoboard.org