StateSec Neculaescu pays working visit to Kyrgyzstan and talks about Kyrgyzstan-EU relation

Secretary of State Dan Neculaescu paid a working visit on Thursday to the Kyrgyz Republic, context in which he stressed the importance of increasing, in the next stage, the collaboration between Romania and Kyrgyzstan at the UN level, a release of the Foreign Affairs Ministry (MAE) sent to AGERPRES informs. 

According to the MAE release, the Romanian official met with First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Dinara Kemelova, Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Nurlan Abdrahmanov, Deputy Economy Minister Eldar Alisherov, Minister of Culture and Tourism Azamat Jamankulov, as well as with President of the Chamber of Commerce Marat Sharshekeev. Moreover, the Romanian diplomat also met the head of the EU delegation to the Kyrgyz Republic Eduard Auer and Romania's honorary Consul in Bishkek Ishenbay Moldotashev. 

The meetings' agenda included topics related to the development of the bilateral dialogue and the economic relations between Romania and the Kyrgyz Republic, collaboration in the culture, education and tourism areas. Furthermore, the Romanian and Kyrgyz officials also tackled the relation of the Kyrgyz Republic with the European Union and the progress accomplished in the negotiation process of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and the Kyrgyz Republic. 

The Romanian State Secretary stressed the importance of increasing, in the next stage, the Romanian-Kyrgyz collaboration at the UN level. Also, he underscored the Romanian expertise in water management, a topic that especially concerns the Central Asia region and also refereed to the connection of the region to the transport corridors linking Europe to Asia, including in the view of the initiative promoted by our country on the Black Sea - Caspian Sea Freight Corridor, the quoted source mentioned. 

In its turn, the Kyrgyz side underscored the determination to deepen cooperation with Romania, both at bilateral level and while considering that the latter will be holding, as of January 2019, the Presidency of the Council of the EU, while expressing a particular interest in relation with the EU Strategy for Central Asia. 

State Secretary Neculaescu's visit to the the Kyrgyz Republic is part of a regional tour, which also included the Republic of Uzbekistan. The tour aimed to deepen the bilateral relations with states of Central Asia, including in view of the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU, in the first half of 2019, but also in view of Romania's bid for a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council, according to the MAE release.