Kazakh and Georgian Prime Ministers Discuss Pivotal Steps to Strengthen Bilateral Cooperation
Firing Up Collaborations: Kazakhstan and Georgia's Bilateral Boost
ASTANA - It's party time for Kazakhstan and Georgia, as they're gearing up to supercharge their cooperation. Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov recently sat down with his Georgian counterpart, Irakli Kobakhidze, to brainstorm some spine-tingling initiatives that will turbocharge trade, transport, agriculture, and digital connections.
Check out the jaw-dropping pic of the Prime Ministers from the press service!
According to the inside scoop, they zeroed in on strategies to stoke trade turnover. Kazakhstan's gonna drop a whopping 35 homemade goodies worth over $66 million on the Georgian market, covering industries from petrochemicals to mechanical engineering.
Tearing Up the Transport Scene
Trade and transport links were the talk of the town, especially the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, also known as the Middle Corridor. The ultimate goal is to unearth the Middle Corridor's hidden potential and skyrocket its yearly capacity to a mind-blowing 10 million tons by 2027. Last year, transportation volume via the Middle Corridor shot up a staggering 62%, reaching an impressive 4.5 million tons.
The Transport and Logistics Investment Group has its eyes on a brand-spanking-new multimodal terminal in the Georgian port of Poti, set to be open for business by April. With a cool $30 million investment, this terminal promises to handle 120,000 containers annually. Kazakh airlines already run 15 direct flights per week to Georgia, which surge to over 40 flights durin' the tourist season.
Energy and Agri Partnerships
Bektenov and Kobakhidze also felt the heat in energy and agriculture collaborations. Kazakhstan shipped a whopping 1.4 million tons of oil last year through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, aiming to ramp up these shipments to a jaw-dropping 2.2 million tons annually.
Agriculture is where it's at. The trade volume of agricultural products grew by a whopping 12.3% in 2024, totaling an eye-popping $71.2 million. Kazakhstan's got plans to beef up flour, grain, vegetable oils, pasta, meat, dairy products, and confectionery exports to Georgia.
To turn these partnership plans into realities, Kazakh Agriculture Minister Aidarbek Saparov is headed to Georgia to discuss Agricultural joint ventures with the Georgian Minister of Agriculture.
A Digital Decadence and Tourism Tour de Force
The duo covered their digitalization and tourism bases, highlighting the broad scope of Kazakhstan-Georgia relations. After their chats, both PMs vowed to strengthen trade, economic, cultural, and humanitarian ties.
Kobakhidze confirmed the vigor of the meet in a post to his X account: "Met with Olzhas Bektenov in Astana's frames. We blabbered about issues near and dear to our hearts in our bilateral partnership and regional issues of import like the development of the Middle Corridor to ensure the flow of goods between Europe and Asia. The Georgian-Kazakh partnership's vital for the fiscal health of our nations and the rippling effects on the region."
Insights
- Kazakhstan is striving for regional cooperation, notably via the 2025 Astana International Forum (AIF), aiming to strengthen Central Asia ties.
- Kazakhstan's Deputy Prime Minister-Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu recently met with U.S. Secretary Rubio for diplomatic engagement.
- Georgia is forging ahead with European integration and enhancing connectivity with its neighbors, including Azerbaijan and Armenia, which benefits both Georgia and Europe.
- The discussions between the Prime Ministers of Kazakhstan and Georgia touched upon policy-and-legislation and politics, with a focus on strengthening trade, economic, cultural, and humanitarian ties.
- In the realm of energy, Kazakhstan aims to increase oil shipments through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline from 1.4 million tons to 2.2 million tons annually.
- The transportation sector will witness a significant boost, with the Transport and Logistics Investment Group planning to open a new multimodal terminal in the Georgian port of Poti by April.
- The migration landscape could be influenced by increased trade and cooperation, particularly as Kazakhstan boosts exports of agricultural products to Georgia, including flour, grain, vegetable oils, pasta, meat, dairy products, and confectionery. War-and-conflicts and general-news aspects might emerge as byproducts of these geopolitical shifts.
