Georgian-Kazakh PMs say trade turnover increased 7 times last year, exceeding $600 mln

Georgian and Kazakh prime ministers on Friday said in Tbilisi the trade turnover between their states had increased seven times last year and exceeded $600 million. 

 

Alikhan Smailov, who is on his first official visit to Georgia, also said Georgian citizens had invested $400 million in his country over the past 17 years, while the amount of Kazakh investments in Georgia exceeded  $530 million. 

 

Both officials hailed “close, strategic partnership” and “friendly ties”, and pledged efforts to further strengthen bilateral relations.  

 

Garibashvili claimed he was working with colleagues from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan to “remove all barriers” and make the Middle Corridor a logistics route that would  connect Central Asia and China to Europe via the South Caucasus “more attractive”. 

 

Smailov arrived in Georgia on Thursday and was hosted at a dinner by Garibashvili, before the face-to-face meeting and the subsequent press briefing the next day. 

 

Garibashvili visited Kazakhstan last year.