By Lee Kap-soo

Ambassador of Kazakhstan Nurgali Arystanov delivered a speech at the Busan-Kazakhstan Business Forum, organized in honor of the first anniversary of the establishment of sister city ties between Almaty and Busan, on Nov. 14.

The event was attended by more than 50 CEOs of South Korean companies, representatives of the Busan City Hall, the Busan Development Institute, Kazakh Invest and Kazakh companies. The event was organized by the Busan Economic Promotion Agency (BEPA) together with the Consulate General of Kazakhstan in Busan.

In his remarks, Ambassador Nurgali Arystanov noted a number of significant events that contribute to the further development of the bilateral agenda: the meeting of the Presidents of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Korea Yoon Suk Yeol in September 2023 in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Korea Park Jin to Kazakhstan in June 2023 as well as a bilateral meeting of the heads of foreign affairs of Kazakhstan and Korea Murat Nurtleu and Park Jin within the framework of the 16th meeting of the Central Asia – Republic of Korea Cooperation Forum in November 2023 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.

In addition, the Ambassador focused on the need to strengthen economic ties between Busan and Kazakh cities. In this regard, while referring to the State of the Nation Address of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, he invited Korean companies to invest in the production of drones, hydrogen energy development, infrastructure and logistics, as well as to use new opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation.

As part of the event, bilateral meetings were held between individual companies to discuss joint investment projects.

In addition, the Ambassador met with the Vice Mayor of Busan Lee Seong Kweun and discussed economic cooperation issues.