12 June 2015 | 17:06

US Ambassador speaks about cooperation between US and Kazakhstan

Ambassador of the United States of America in Kazakhstan George Krol explained the mutual benefits of US-Kazakhstani relations, Tengrinews reports.

&ldquoThe United States is very far away from Kazakhstan, why do we need all this? But I tell you, look at the map! Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world by the size of its territory. It is strategically located between East and West, between North and South. It is also a country with a huge oil and gas, mineral and agricultural potential. In this region, with the potential and the resources that are available, Kazakhstan has a good chance and big plans to become a leader not only in the region but also to become one of the developed economies of the world," Krol said in Astana during US-Kazakhstan Business Forum on June 2.

"Strategic partnership with the United States is also very important for Kazakhstan because the United States still remains the largest and most powerful economy in the world, not only in terms of investments but also as the leading scientific, technical, educational and know-how power. And it is a very important part of the global economic development, and we could become partners with Kazakhstan in order to attract other global investors here and link Kazakhstan with the rest of the world," the American diplomat said.

The Ambassador then made a loud statement: "The United States and Kazakhstan, I would say, have been made for each other. And we have pledged to deepen this strategic partnership and increase our economic and business interaction. In this part, we have agreed that we will work on the development of our commercial cooperation."

The ambassador recalled how the history of relations between the two countries began. In the early 1990s, he said, the main interest of the US was in the energy sector, because &ldquoKazakhstan has vast energy and mineral resources. But now there is a huge potential for diversification, to work not only on the oil and gas sector, but also on energy and food safety. And this is a huge success for Kazakhstan.&rdquo

He also drew attention to the fact that the US was interested in the stability of the Central Asian region that borders on Afghanistan that &ldquopresents some strategic challenges for the United States.&rdquo Therefore, the US is particularly interested in the economic and business component of the stability in the region.

Reported by Renat Tashkinbayev, writing by Dinara Urazova

United States Central Asia CIS cooperation diplomat economy Energy Kazakh Kazakhstan news ambassador