16 bilateral agreements boost Riyadh-Astana ties

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev witnessed on Tuesday the signing of 16 mutual agreements in different areas. 
The accords were inked following extensive talks between the king and Nazarbayev at Al-Yamamah Palace.
“The agreements, including the MoUs, cover diverse areas of cooperation like nuclear energy, agriculture, commerce, a roadmap for future cooperation as well as extradition and exchange of sentenced persons languishing in jails,” said Kazak Ambassador Bakyt Batyrshayev. The king also hosted a luncheon banquet in honor of the visiting dignitary.
The talks focused on a range of bilateral, regional and international issues, said the diplomat.
Referring to other meetings of Nazarbayev, the ambassador said: “The president had a review meeting with chief of the Islamic Development Bank Bandar bin Mohammed Hajar.” 
To this end, he noted that the total portfolio of the projects in the Central Asian country, in which IDB is involved, is about $1.3 billion. This also includes future projects to be implemented in cooperation with the IDB.
He pointed out that the meeting between the Kazakh president and OIC Secretary-General Iyad Madani focused on OIC-Kazakh ties. 
Kazakhstan will be holding the OIC Summit on Science and Technology in September next year. 
A three-member OIC delegation, headed by assistant secretary-general, Muhammad Naeem Khan, recently visited Astana to hold preparatory discussions about the forthcoming OIC summit.
Nazarbayev also met with a group of leading Saudi businessmen before he wrapped up his two-day visit. 
Kazakhstan, with a 70 percent Muslim population, is a natural ally of the Kingdom. It is also a member of the Jeddah-based OIC. 
Nazarbayev first arrived in the holy city of Madinah, where he met and held talks with Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman before heading to Riyadh. 
The envoy said that Kazakhstan sees Saudi Arabia “as an important political and economic partner in the Middle East and the entire Islamic world.”

Source: Arab News