Kazakh and Russia leaders reiterate commitment to Eurasian integration

    Russian President Vladimir Putin began a three-nation tour of Central Asia on February 27 with a visit to Kazakhstan. Putin heads to Tajikistan later on February 27 and visits Kyrgyzstan on February 28.
    In Almaty, Putin met with Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who said that Russia and Kazakhstan have built perfect relations over the past quarter of a century, Russia’s TASS news agency reported.
    "Over the past 25 years we have built a perfect sample of relations that should exist between friendly neighbors and countries," Nazarbayev said at the meeting with Putin. "This year marks 25 years of our diplomatic relations."
    Among the achievements Nazarbayev mentioned the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union, which had become a "promising, important affair" for all members of the EEU.
    Nazarbayev also said that Russia remains Kazakhstan’s "number one partner in politics and the economy".
    At the meeting, Putin emphasized that Kazakhstan is one of Russia’s key partners.
    "Yes, we mark some decline in trade turnover in terms of value, this is due to exchange rate differences, primarily from fluctuations in world market prices for our basic export goods. But in the physical volumes it remained the same. Our task is to increase the sales volumes and reach sustainable growth," the Russian president said.
    Putin added that the conditions for that have already been created through the EEU integration process, the Times of Central Asia wrote.
    The Eurasian Development Bank has approved a project worth several billion dollars for Kazakhstan, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said at his meeting with Nazarbayev.
    "For Kazakhstan it (the bank) has already approved a project for several billion dollars. I think this is a good sign for us to be confident in the positive development of our economic relations," Putin said.
    Putin noted that Kazakhstan is one of the key partners of Russia.
    "Yes, we mark some decline in trade turnover in terms of value, this is due to exchange rate differences, primarily from fluctuations in world market prices for our basic export goods. But the physical volumes it remained the same. Our task is to increase the sales volumes and reach sustainable growth," the Russian leader said.
    He added that the conditions for it have already been created through the integration process.
    The Russian leader said that Russia counts on the support of Kazakhstan as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. He stressed that the issues of integration involving the two countries are being resolved in working order. Putin noted that "there are some difficulties and problems that require careful consideration of the first persons (of the states)" and proposed discussing them at the meeting today, Tass.ru reported.