Omani Sultan and Kazakh President Discuss Prospects of Bilateral Partnership and Expanding Cooperation in Various Fields

Omani Sultan Haitham bin Tariq and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev discussed the prospects for partnership between their two countries and ways to expand cooperation in various fields, including energy, mining, transport, logistics, food security, artificial intelligence, and financial services, during talks in the capital city of Astana.

The Oman News Agency reported that these discussions took place during an extensive session between the two sides, which addressed a number of issues and developments on the regional and international stages, with both sides exchanging views in the context of their commitment to consultation and coordination of positions that would help consolidate peace and security in the region.

The agency quoted the Omani Sultan as saying that the two countries share a solid friendship built on mutual respect, trust, and a shared aspiration for constructive cooperation and elevating bilateral relations to new horizons of growth and prosperity. He emphasized the commitment to strengthening the bilateral partnership, particularly in the fields of trade, investment, energy, mining, transport, logistics, food security, financial services, tourism, digital technologies, and artificial intelligence.

He pointed out Kazakhstan’s strategic location in Central Asia and Oman’s position at the crossroads of major maritime trade routes, noting the vast potential for further developing and expanding new trade and transport links, and maximizing the use of Omani ports as gateways to key markets in the Gulf, Asia, and Africa.

For his part, the agency quoted the Kazakh President as saying that Oman has achieved a remarkable economic transformation and has become a pillar of stability in the Middle East region, while continuing to exert influential sway and voice on the international stage. He reaffirmed his country’s commitment to developing comprehensive cooperation between Kazakhstan and Oman and to firmly establishing closer relations, expressing his aspiration to achieve new accomplishments in their bilateral cooperation.

According to the agency, the Omani Sultan and the Kazakh President subsequently witnessed the exchange of several documents, including five agreements and ten memoranda of understanding in economic, investment, commercial, logistical, technical, health, agricultural, cultural, and other fields. The documents also included an executive agreement for the Joint Investment Fund (establishing a joint investment fund) and two cooperation agreements regarding investment opportunities in oil and gas exploration and production between Oman’s OQ and Kazakhstan’s national company KazMunayGas.

In a related development, the agency reported that the Omani Sultan and the Kazakh President attended the Omani-Kazakh Business Forum at the Global Financial Centre in Astana, where Sultan Haitham bin Tariq praised the growth and development of partnership and investment areas between the two countries. The forum witnessed the signing of agreements and memoranda of understanding, and the official announcement of the activation of electronic linking between the Muscat Stock Exchange and the Astana International Exchange, enabling investors to access securities listed in both markets and execute trading operations.