ASTANA – Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Financial Secretary of Hong Kong John Tsang recently discussed cooperation in the framework of the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC).
“Your experience as one the world’s leading financial centers is very important for us. Currently, we are at a formative stage. Overall, our cooperation is in line with the good relations between Kazakhstan and China,” Nazarbayev highlighted.
Tsang thanked the President for his warm reception and noted the success of previous talks. “The strong partnership between Kazakhstan and China is the basis for our cooperation. Our delegation consists of 20 representatives of business circles. We held productive talks with the Kazakh side and discussed all issues on the agenda,” the financial secretary said.
Tsang also met with Kazakh newly appointed Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev to discuss increasing investment cooperation between Kazakhstan and Hong Kong.
“We see our financial centre as a gateway that provides trade and financial flows between developed and developing countries of the East and West,” Sagintayev said.
At the meeting with Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov on Sept.14, the parties discussed training opportunities for staff members of the AIFC at Hong Kong’s financial institutions.
Tsang stated that Hong Kong business community is ready to invest in innovative projects in Kazakhstan, including trade, logistics and services sectors.
The sides also placed great emphasis on issues of mutual protection and promotion of investment, avoidance of double taxation between Kazakhstan and Hong Kong as well as the adoption of inter-sectorial and interagency bilateral documents.
