BISHKEK (TCA) — During his first official visit abroad since his inauguration on November 24, Kyrgyzstan’s new President Sooronbai Jeenbekov has pledged to take “every effort” to strengthen partnership between Kyrgyzstan and Russia, RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service reported.

“It is very symbolic for me to pay my first visit as Kyrgyz president to Russia. That is the way it should be,” Jeenbekov said on November 29 as he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

Jeenbekov said the visit “means that we are firmly committed to strengthening our relations, our alliance, our strategic partnership. For my part, I will make every effort for our partnership to develop and strengthen.”

Putin expressed confidence that bilateral ties in the economic sphere “will continue developing, just as in in the sphere of security.”

Jeenbekov also met in the Russian capital with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, who voiced hope that Moscow and Bishkek will “maintain current contacts.”

The Kyrgyz president’s administration has said he would discuss bilateral ties and “Eurasian integration” with the Russian leadership.

Kyrgyzstan is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, a trade grouping that unites five former Soviet republics and is dominated by Russia and Kazakhstan.

In his inaugural address on November 24, Jeenbekov said that “Kyrgyzstan will continue to promote its strategic partnership with Russia and will bolster its strategic partnership with China.”

In an interview with Russian state news agency TASS before the visit, he called Russia “our main strategic partner” and also spoke of cultivating ties with China and Europe, but made no mention of the United States.

ASTANA (TCA) — Kazakhstan is set to develop urban Energy Efficiency Plans for its two largest cities – Astana and Almaty. A new study, conducted jointly by city municipalities and the World Bank, outlines key improvements to be made in the energy sector of the two cities within the next 15 years, allowing savings of up to 25% on total energy consumption, the World Bank said in a press release on November 28.

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KABUL (TCA) — Ambassador of Japan to Afghanistan, Mitsuji Suzuka, on November 27 said his country will fund the second phase of the Livelihood Improvement Project in Tajik-Afghan Cross-border Areas, TOLOnews reported.

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ASTANA (TCA) — On November 28, the Government of Kazakhstan approved the country’s Strategic Development Plan until 2025 and submitted it to the President for final approval, the official website of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan reported.

Presenting the plan, Minister of National Economy Timur Suleimenov reported that the main goal of the Strategic Plan is to ensure a qualitative and sustainable growth of the economy until 2025, and to achieve a standard of living comparable to that of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. 

According to the plan, economic growth is planned to be at the level of at least 4.5%-5% per year, which will allow Kazakhstan to increase its per capita GDP up to $46,100 by 2025.

Suleimenov said the draft plan had passed four stages of discussion at different levels, including expert assessments of international organizations.

During seven years of the Plan’s implementation, the state’s share in entrepreneurship should decrease almost twofold, Ablay Myrzakhmetov, the chairman of the board of the Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan, said during the Plan’s discussion by the expert community on November 27.

Under the Plan, the budget policy will change towards the elimination of inefficient measures, incentives will be given to competitive enterprises. Thanks to large-scale privatization and the transfer of competitive activities of the state to the business environment, the state’s share in the economy will be radically reduced.

Implementation of the Plan will allow increasing the share of small and medium business in the economy of Kazakhstan up to 35%. “This is a serious challenge, but the business is ready for the change,” Myrzakhmetov said.

ASTANA (TCA) — The Foreign Ministry of Kazakhstan says it has held talks with Chinese officials regarding “frequent complaints by ethnic Kazakhs about problems they face in the People’s Republic of China,” RFE/RL reports.

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