Rome, Jan 18 (EFE).- Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met on Thursday in Rome with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, among other meetings, and reached agreements to strengthen trade ties with its leading European economic partner.
Tokayev, on his first official visit to Italy as president of the Central Asian country, was first received with honors by his counterpart, Italian President Sergio Mattarella, at Quirinale Palace.
At the meeting between the two, which was also attended by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Mattarella highlighted the “great collaboration” with Astana and the desire to intensify it.
“It is a privilege to welcome you and the delegation accompanying you. For the Italian Republic it is an honor to receive you, on your first official visit that crowns a series of high-level meetings and visits, a sign of our great collaboration,” Mattarella said at the beginning of the bilateral meeting.
The Italian head of state encouraged the intensification of this “political, economic and cultural” collaboration.
Tokayev, for his part, said he would discuss the “development of economic ties and the stability of relations aimed at the prosperity of the two countries,” as well as to talk about “ways of solving” current international problems.
Later in the day, the Kazakh leader met with the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, who received him, as protocol dictates, with a guard of honor at Chigi Palace in Rome, the seat of government.
Bilateral trade and agreements
The Kazakh president then went to the Italian Foreign Ministry to take part in a round table on investments between Italy and Kazakhstan, during which several cooperation and trade agreements were signed.
Specifically, sixteen memorandums were inked, twelve of them commercial, in various fields, from financial cooperation to export assistance, agriculture, energy projects, and also renewables.
Tajani assured that Tokayev’s presence in Rome “confirms the reciprocal will to continue this process and expand an already deep and forward-looking bilateral partnership,” because Italy sees “great potential” between the two nations.
Kazakhstan, the largest country in Central Asia, has maintained diplomatic relations since 1992 with Italy, which in these years became one of its top three trading partners and the main partner of the European Union.
Bilateral trade grew by 54 % in 2022 to 14.9 billion dollars (13.711 billion euros).
Kazakh exports to Italy were $13.8 billion (€12.711 billion) mainly thanks to oil, as the Italian company Eni has been present in Kazakhstan since 1992, producing 32 million barrels a year.
The Central Asian country also supplies Italy with ferroalloys, grain, copper, and unprocessed aluminum, among other goods.
By contrast, Italy’s exports to the Central Asian country grew by 36% in 2022, to $1 billion (€920 million).
In particular, Kazakhstan bought from Italy medicines worth $132.6 million (about 125 million euros), air and vacuum pumps for $71 million (65 million euros), and valves and industrial goods for $59.6 million (55 million euros).
Tokayev’s trip to Italy includes a visit to the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis on Friday. EFE