The Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Mr Ebrahim Ebrahim together with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Mr Kairat Sarybay co-chaired the 3rd round of bilateral consultations between South Africa and Kazakhstan held in Pretoria today, 10 October 2013.
Structural bilateral meetings remains vital in ensuring that partner countries regularly review the scope of their relationship and identify new areas of cooperation. In this connection, the 3rd round of Inter-Governmental Consultation played a pivotal part in further strengthening and deepening the bilateral relationship between South Africa and Kazakhstan.
The main objectives of the 3rd round of Inter-Governmental Consultations, were the following:
- to review the scope of bilateral relations since the second round of Inter-Governmental Consultations in Astana, Kazakhstan in May 2012.
- to discuss preparations for the incoming state visit of President Nazabayev Nusultan of Kazakhstan on 3 to 4 December 2013.
- to review progress regarding outstanding draft Agreements to be signed during the state visit in December.
During the Inter-Governmental Consultations, both parties expressed their willingness to strengthen bilateral contacts in various fields. The delegations noted the importance of establishing cooperation in a variety of spheres and highlighted the potential for further development.
The delegations exchanged views on issues of multilateral cooperation within the framework of international organisations. They also briefed each other of their respective positions on topical international issues, including the situations in Syria; Egypt and Kenya. The Kazakhstan delegation briefed the South African delegation on political and security issues in both Central Asia and Afghanistan.
