Welcoming General Secretary To Lam, his wife Ngo Phuong Ly and the delegation were: President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev; Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs M. Nurtleu; Deputy Prime Minister in charge of economic and social affairs Kosherbayev; Foreign Affairs Advisor to the President E. Kazykhan; Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Vietnam Kanat Tumysh; Minister of Health of Kazakhstan; Mayor of Astana city; Ambassador of Vietnam to Kazakhstan Pham Thai Nhu Mai; officials and staff of the Embassy of Vietnam in Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan is the first stop in General Secretary To Lam 's visit to four countries: Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Russia and Belarus.

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General Secretary To Lam and his wife begin a state visit to Kazakhstan. Photo: Minh Nhat

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev shook hands to welcome General Secretary To Lam and his wife, and introduced Kazakhstani officials.

Kazakh girls and teenagers in national costumes approached to present flowers to General Secretary To Lam and his wife.

Next, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev invited General Secretary To Lam and his wife to walk on the honor carpet, along two rows of honor guards standing solemnly to welcome them.

This is the first time the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam has visited Kazakhstan and is also the highest-level visit of Vietnam to Kazakhstan in the 33 years since the two countries established diplomatic relations.

General Secretary To Lam's visit is historic, bringing the two countries' relations into depth and comprehensive development in all fields.

In 2023, President of Kazakhstan Tokayev visited Vietnam. The visit was an important "push" in the relationship between the two countries, promoting political trust, consolidating traditional friendship and enhancing multifaceted cooperation between the two countries.

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President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev welcomed General Secretary To Lam and his wife at the airport. Photo: Minh Nhat

Vietnamese Ambassador to Kazakhstan Pham Thai Nhu Mai said that the relationship will be upgraded to a new level, in line with the common interests of the two countries.

During the visit, the two countries will sign many important documents on bilateral cooperation, contributing to promoting defense, security and justice cooperation; connecting economic, trade, investment, finance, science, technology, digital transformation, energy - mining, culture, sports and tourism cooperation; enhancing cooperation between localities and people-to-people exchange.

Kazakhstan is currently Vietnam's second largest trading partner in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), while Vietnam is Kazakhstan's second largest trading partner in ASEAN. In 2024, the two countries' trade turnover is approximately 1 billion USD, a figure that is not commensurate with the potential for cooperation between the two countries.

Many new routes connect Vietnam - Kazakhstan as well as the Central Asian region. Many Vietnamese companies are also stepping up their search for investment opportunities in Kazakhstan's oil and gas, real estate, food, tourism, etc. sectors.

In addition to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City has been twinned with the capital Astana and the city of Almaty. In 2024, new pairs of twinned localities will be witnessed, such as Da Nang city and Aktau city, Bac Ninh province and East Kazakhstan province.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/tong-thong-kazakhstan-ra-san-bay-don-tong-bi-thu-to-lam-va-phu-nhan-2398020.html