Rustam Minnikhanov: Tatarstan makes a significant contribution to the development of cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan

On October 26, at the Kazan City Hall, speaking at a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan with participation of First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance of Russia Anton Siluanov and First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Askar Mamin, Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov said that Tatarstan makes a significant contribution to the development of cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan.

Opening the meeting, Siluanov noted that Tatarstan is one of the leading entities of Russia in terms of creating a favorable investment climate. “The republic shows high growth rates of gross product, which is two times higher than the national average. Rustam Minnikhanov pays much attention to the development of entrepreneurship. We are grateful to the leadership of the republic for the hospitality and assistance in organizing the meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission,” First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia said.

Siluanov emphasized that Kazakhstan is one of the main trading partners for Russia. The volume of mutual trade is growing: the trade turnover increased by 23 per cent for the period from January to July of the current year.

He noted that Russia is interested in supplying civil aircraft, railway equipment, agricultural products and a number of other goods to Kazakhstan.

Siluanov also drew attention to the strengthening of relations in the financial sector. Thus, today, there is an active adoption of the payments in national currencies.

He added that the 15th Forum of Interregional Cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan will be held in the Kazakh city of Petropavlovsk in November this year, during which issues of the development of tourism will be discussed. 

According to Minnikhanov, the Kazakhstan and Tatarstan economies are facing a major task of increasing the trade turnover to one billion US dollars. Today, work in a number of areas is underway. First of all, it is necessary to continue the promotion of KAMAZ Automaker products. Tatarstan President reminded that Kazakhstan is the second largest sales market for the Chelny auto giant after Russia. There is great potential for interaction in the petrochemical complex. There are major opportunities for cooperation in the field of shipbuilding and helicopter manufacturing.

Relationships in the humanitarian sphere, including in the area of ​​educational programmes, are also actively developing. Today, over 1,500 students from Kazakhstan study at Tatarstan universities.

A large number of Tatars live in Kazakhstan. The leadership of the country greatly supports them helping to preserve the national culture and traditions. I express my gratitude to them,” Minnikhanov addressed the representatives of Kazakhstan Government.

In his turn, Mamin stressed that the share of the Russian Federation accounts for over 20 per cent of Kazakhstan’s external trade turnover.

During the meeting, the members of the Intergovernmental Commission emphasized further steps of strengthening the Russian-Kazakh interaction in the fields of industry, transport, agriculture, science and education. A number of cooperation documents were signed at the end of the meeting. In particular, Minnikhanov and Mamin signed an Action Plan on the implementation of the Agreement between Tatarstan Government and Kazakhstan Government on principles of trade, economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation.