Pompeo calls Kazakhstan reliable partner of US

NUR-SULTAN - Visiting US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that Kazakhstan is a reliable partner of the United States in Central Asia and pledged to foster the "Enhanced Strategic Partnership" between the two countries.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Kazakh Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tleuberdi in Nur-Sultan, Pompeo said the United States fully supports the reforms rolled out by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to boost economic development and increase public confidence in the government.

Pompeo appreciated Kazakh work on peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan and repatriating Kazakh citizens from Syria and Iraq, including terrorists and their families.

The U.S. official also posited the United States as a strong business partner for Kazakhstan.

For his part, Tleuberdi said Kazakhstan considers the United States as a source of investment, new technologies and knowledge, and welcomes high-quality cooperation to diversify its economy.

"There is significant potential for cooperation in IT and other knowledge-intensive industries," Tleuberdi said.

The two sides will continue to strengthen cooperation in the fight against international terrorism and extremism, and the spread of radical ideology, said Tleuberdi, adding that Kazakhstan actively supports the regional format C5+1 dialogue (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan plus the United States).

Pompeo paid a two-day visit to Kazakhstan on Feb. 1-2 and is scheduled to attend the foreign ministers' meeting of the C5+1 dialogue in the Uzbek capital Tashkent on Monday.