Erdogan hopes upcoming high-level meeting in Ankara to boost cooperation with Kazakhstan - Kazakh Foreign Ministry
ASTANA. April 20 (Interfax) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said at a meeting with Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov that he is confident that Kazakh-Turkish cooperation will develop further and hopes that bilateral trade grows to $10 billion a year, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry's press service said on Friday.
"Erdogan expressed confidence that the planned session of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council in Ankara under the chairmanship of the two states' leaders will give a powerful boost to comprehensive cooperation between the two countries," the press service said.
Kazakhstan is Turkey's major trading partner in Central Asia, the press service said, adding that in this context, Erdogan proposed setting a new target for bilateral trade growth: $10 billion a year.
The ongoing Astana process for Syria backed by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev is important and has helped boost Kazakhstan's authority in the international arena, Erdogan said.
The Syria truce guarantor countries will continue working to restore stability in Syria, as the Turkish, Russian, and Iranian leaders agreed at their meeting in Ankara on April 4, he said.
Erdogan also thanked Nazarbayev for Kazakhstan's contribution to efforts to provide humanitarian aid to the Rohingya people.
Nazarbayev is planning to pay an official visit to Turkey this summer.
The sides are currently negotiating the visit's agenda and draft documents that may be signed. Plans to sign a number of economic contracts during the visit are also being discussed.