COMMUNIQUE ON THE OCCASION OF THE 29th ANNIVERSARY OF DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN AND THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM

August 25, 2021 marks the 29th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Kingdom of Belgium.

During this period, a significant path has been passed in the development of relations between the two countries. Politically, the countries have reached a high level of mutual understanding. The first President of Kazakhstan - Elbasy N.Nazarbayev paid 9 visits to Belgium, and the King of the Belgians Philippe visited Kazakhstan in the status of Crown Prince 3 times. Political consultations are held regularly. The next meeting is expected to be held in Nur-Sultan in 2021.

Belgian cosmonaut Frank De Winne was twice a member of the International Space Station expedition where he was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome.

Inter-parliamentary friendship groups are successfully functioning in the parliaments of the two countries. An important event was the online negotiations in May 2021 between the Chairman of the Majilis of the Parliament of Kazakhstan Nurlan Nigmatulin and the Chairman of the House of Representatives of Belgium Eliane Tillieux.

Cultural ties have expanded, friendship between the peoples of the two states is growing. In June 2021, the Brussels Musical Instruments Museum was donated Kazakh musical instruments dombyra, kobyz and sybyzgy, which will be included in the list of the Royal Museums of Art and History of Belgium, and will also be available worldwide through the online catalog of the museum and the international database of musical instruments « MIMO ».

A monument to the Belgian Smurfs is erected in the Botanical Garden in Almaty.

In August 2021, collections of «Words of Edification» by Abai Kunanbayev in French were transferred to the fund of the Royal Library, the largest in Belgium.

Cooperation in the field of education is developing. The number of Kazakh students in Belgium increased from 20 in 2017 to 200 in 2021.

On a regular basis, Kazakhstan is visited by the economic mission of Belgian enterprises under the leadership of the investment agencies AWEX and FIT: the next mission is expected this fall. 75 enterprises operate in Kazakhstan with the participation of Belgian capital. Since 2005, the total volume of Belgian investment in the Kazakh economy has amounted to about $ 9 billion.

All of this gives us confidence that Kazakh-Belgium relations will continue to develop successfully in the spirit of trusting dialogue and partnership.