ASTANA, Kazakhstan, March 27. Kazakh Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu has held a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington, during which they discussed the progressive development of the expanded Kazakhstan-US strategic partnership in the political, trade, economic, and humanitarian spheres, TurkicWorld reports citing the MFA.

Noting the balanced nature of the foreign policy of Kazakhstan, Foreign Minister Nurtleu paid special attention to the pragmatic implementation of transport and logistics, infrastructure, trade, and investment potential of Kazakhstan, including through attracting advanced American technologies, strengthening business contacts, and achieving mutually beneficial trade relations. Over the past year, trade between the countries increased by 33 percent, reaching $4 billion.

The Foreign Minister and Secretary of State highly valued the cooperation between the countries in the fields of energy security, critical minerals, climate, peacekeeping, etc.

Secretary Blinken welcomed the consistency of fundamental reforms initiated by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and underlined Washington's readiness to continue its full assistance in implementing the reforms. "The United States recognizes Kazakhstan's true leadership in many global issues," stated Blinken.

The parties also discussed opportunities to expand the "C5+1" dialogue and further implement the agreements of the first-ever Summit held in New York in September 2023.

In conclusion, the parties agreed to continue dialogue on relevant bilateral agenda issues.