Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan _ partnering towards a boom

Following is President Mahinda Rajapaksa's statement to the press after the President’s bilateral meeting with Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev in Astana.

At the outset let me state how delighted I am to be here in Kazakhstan. This is my first visit to your beautiful country. I am also honoured to be the first Head of State of Sri Lanka to visit Kazakhstan at the kind invitation of President Nazarbayev.

This year not only marks the 21st anniversary of Kazakhstan's independence, but it is also 20 years since diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan were established. Therefore it is significant for me to be here on this official visit.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa with Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Picture by Sudath Silva

Relations between Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan have grown steadily. Our bilateral trade in dollar terms has increased by over 60 percent in the last few years and prospects for enhanced trade relations are high. It is for this reason that I have brought a delegation of leading businessmen from my country to participate in the Business Forum.

It is extremely important for the business communities of our two countries to personally interact, in order to forge strong business links. President Nazarbayev and I have also discussed prospects for enhanced trade and foreign direct investment, and joint tourism promotion.

I am happy to note that direct charter flights have commenced between Almaty and Colombo through joint collaboration on 'Luk Aero Air'. Undoubtedly this is a huge boost to increasing people to people contact and business interaction.

Bilateral Agreement

Today, we have signed a bilateral Agreement on Tourism Cooperation and our Ceylon Chamber of Commerce will enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Kazakhstan. We agreed on the importance of concluding a bilateral Agreement on the Promotion and Protection of Investment at the earliest, to further facilitate investment in the two countries.

I held very fruitful discussions with President Nazarbayev and appreciate the President's pledge to fully support initiatives that will enhance cooperation between our two countries in a range of fields, which include tourism, agriculture, power and energy, education, culture and technology.

We will shortly commence negotiations that will lead to the conclusion of Agreements on Economic and Technical Cooperation, Avoidance of Double Taxation, Air Services, Cooperation in the field of Sports and Reciprocal Visa Exemption for holders of Diplomatic and Official passports.

The leadership skills of President Nazarbayev been amply demonstrated both nationally and internationally. His vision in building Asian solidarity as the founder of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, popularly known as CICA is widely acknowledged.

I am happy to announce that Sri Lanka has decided to seek Observer status in the CICA and to work closely with its framework in strengthening cooperation among the countries of Asia.

Sri Lanka takes this opportunity to congratulate Kazakhstan on being elected to the UN Human Rights Council and looks forward to engaging on issues within its framework.

I have also conveyed to President Nazarbayev that Sri Lanka will strongly support Kazakhstan's bid to host Expo 2017 in Astana at the elections to be held in Paris later this week. Hosting this exhibition is very much in tandem with Kazakhstan's positioning and potential to be an economic hub in the Eurasian region.

Outstanding achievements

I am looking forward to my meeting with Prime Minister Ahmetov and the Chairman of your Senate and to tour many parts of your beautiful new capital city, which is a symbol of your country's outstanding achievements and progress under the dynamic and visionary leadership of President Nazarbayev.

As an expression of our desire to share our cultural traditions with the people of Kazakhstan, particularly to celebrate this 20th anniversary, we have here in Astana one of our famous cultural dance troops from Sri Lanka who performed at a special cultural show at the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation. I am aware of your country's own rich cultural heritage and look forward to welcoming very soon your artistes in Colombo.

I have come to Astana as a friend of Kazakhstan and to convey to President Nazarbayev the assurance of the strongest support for your country, both at bilateral and multilateral levels.

I have invited President Nazarbayev to visit Sri Lanka at an early opportunity and we look forward to welcoming the President to Colombo.