The visit of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Azerbaijan is a historic event, Director of the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies (KISS) under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Yerkin Tukumov said, Report informs referring to the Kazakh media.
He noted that this is Tokayev's first visit to Azerbaijan as head of state: "Both Tokayev and Aliyev had previously met at various forums and summits, but this is the first such bilateral meeting, and great importance is attached to it, because the dialogue between the leaders of the two states means a lot."
According to the expert, the two countries have many promising areas of cooperation and great potential for the development of bilateral relations in all areas - trade and economic, humanitarian, transport, cultural, scientific, analytical, tourism development and so on.
"Kazakhstan supports the restoration of the territorial integrity of fraternal Azerbaijan not only in words but also in deeds, and is ready to contribute to the construction of New Azerbaijan. After the restoration of territorial integrity in Azerbaijan, a new stage in the development of statehood has actually begun," the expert believes.
The political scientist also noted the importance of developing a transport corridor: "For Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, this is an access to the markets of Central Asia, the countries of the Eurasian Union, China. China is one of the most important economies in the world, so we are interested in developing Kazakh-Azerbaijani relations and cooperation."
In turn, according to the head of the department of international and geo-economic studies of the KISS under the President of Kazakhstan Aidar Kurmashev, there is insufficient efficiency in logistics and transit of goods through the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route.
“The development of trade and economic relations with Azerbaijan, a natural ally of Kazakhstan and one of the main players in the Turkic world, is of strategic importance. Our countries have similar interests - the development of the non-primary sector of the economy and the expansion of transport and communication potential. This creates good opportunities for cooperation. In this regard, I believe that the visit of the president of Kazakhstan to Baku will be of historical importance in intensifying the interaction between the two countries,” he said.
Oljas Beisenbay, an expert of the Kazakh Institute of Social Development "Rukhani Jangyru", noted that in the last 2-3 months an important stage has begun in Kazakh-Azerbaijani relations on the implementation of large bilateral infrastructure projects. After Tokayev's current visit to Azerbaijan, bilateral relations will receive a new impetus for development, the expert added.
“In particular, for the construction of railways on the Dostyk-Moyynty section, the development of container hubs, the port of Aktau and other competitive areas. According to preliminary data, in four months of 2022, cargo transportation along the Trans-Caspian route reached 733,000 tons, that is, more than 5,000 wagons. This indicator indicates the incomplete development of our potential," Beisenbay said.