FM visits Kazakhstan in bid to access central Asia
At a time when Greece’s “opening” to Central Asia is deemed to be of paramount importance, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias visited Kazakhstan on Monday after months of preparation.
Apart from the Turkish presence in the region, Kazakhstan has been upgraded since the war in Ukraine due to its geography and its very close ties with Beijing. Tellingly, Kazakhstan is the alternative transit hub linking China to Europe, bypassing Russia and Ukraine.
In addition to the 30 years of diplomatic relations that are being celebrated this year, Kazakhstan is, among other things, Greece’s first supplier of crude oil (23%), while some 10,000 ethnic Greeks live in the country’s south.
Dendias met with counterpart Mukhtar Tileuberdi and President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. “I am the first Greek foreign minister to visit your country, and for this I am very proud,” he said.
Kazakh authorities also responded positively to Greece’s request to open honorary consulates in Almaty and Aktau.
Ι signed with #Kazakhstan DPM/FM Tileuberdi Mukhtar #MoU between @GreeceMFA & @MFA_KZ on cooperation in the field of Diplomatic Training. pic.twitter.com/5u1Vczgu5S
— Nikos Dendias (@NikosDendias) December 5, 2022
