Kazakh Prime Minister Receives President Putin at Astana Airport

Astana, The Gulf Observer: Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Astana Airport, according to reports from media outlets citing the Kazakh Government’s press service.

President Putin’s visit to Kazakhstan is in anticipation of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit. The SCO, founded in 2001, includes Kazakhstan, China, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan as its founding members. The organization has since expanded to include Iran, India, and Pakistan.

The economic ties between Kazakhstan and other SCO member states have strengthened significantly over the past five years, with commodity turnover increasing by 56.5%, reaching a total of 66 billion US dollars. In the first four months of this year alone, intra-SCO trade amounted to 19.1 billion US dollars.

The SCO Summit is expected to further discuss and enhance the cooperation among member states, focusing on economic, political, and security issues in the region.