May 24, 2024
SINGAPORE – Kazakhstan and Singapore have agreed to cooperate in six areas – economic integration, security, enterprise standards, intellectual property (IP) rights protection, higher education and legal dispute resolution.
The memorandums of understanding (MOUs) sealing the agreements were signed by officials representing the two countries on May 23, as part of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s two-day state visit to Singapore.
This is the first time Mr Tokayev is on an official visit here as the head of state. But he is familiar with Singapore, having served here as a young diplomat for the Soviet Union in the 1970s, and visited the Republic as Kazakhstan’s foreign minister in 2004 and chairman of the Senate in 2016.
Kazakhstan, with a population of about 20 million, is the Republic’s largest trading partner in Central Asia.
Speaking at a state banquet on May 23, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam said there is potential for the two countries to do more.
This includes improving air connectivity, he said, welcoming plans by Kazakh flag carrier Air Astana to launch direct flights to Singapore.
Singapore can explore the possibility of importing more agri-food products from Kazakhstan, and both countries can exchange experiences managing multi-religious and multi-ethnic societies, he added.
Before toasting to continued friendship, Mr Tharman cited a well-known Kazakh proverb that refers to friendship as an “inexhaustible wealth”, and said: “We in Singapore certainly appreciate our growing wealth of friendship with Kazakhstan and look forward to doing more together.”
Mr Tokayev returned the toast with another Kazakh proverb that says a divided country is doomed to fail, while a united country is destined to prosper.
He added that it has become clear his visit will not be just a one-off event, but the start of an exciting journey in the two countries’ enduring relations.
Mr Tokayev also said he draws inspiration from Singapore’s nation-building story as he works towards building a “just Kazakhstan”.
Deeper cooperation
The economic cooperation agreement that Singapore signed with Kazakhstan on May 23 is to explore new areas of collaboration, and develop closer relations as a means to promote this, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI).
Part of the agreement is also to have both countries deepen and diversify economic cooperation in areas such as trade and connectivity, technology and innovation, urban and sustainable development, and tourism and people-to-people exchanges.
“This cooperation signifies a continuation of the longstanding economic ties between our countries, and complements existing trade architecture such as our Bilateral Investment Treaty as well as Services and Investment Agreement,” MTI added.
The Services and Investment Agreement was signed in May 2023 and comes under the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union-Singapore Free Trade Agreement.
When this agreement comes into force after ratification by both sides, it will provide enhanced market access and improved investment protection.
The Bilateral Investment Treaty, signed on Nov 21, 2018, recently entered into force after ratification by both sides.
In his speech, Mr Tharman said he “looks forward to the impending ratification” of the Services and Investment Agreement by the Kazakhs. Once in force, the agreement will provide companies with greater business confidence and encourage further commercial exchanges between the two countries, Mr Tharman said.
The MOU signed on May 23 came against the backdrop of strengthening bilateral trade between the two countries: Bilateral trade in goods grew 46.3 per cent year on year to $603.1 million in 2023, while bilateral trade in services grew 172.9 per cent year on year to $67.4 million in 2022.
Singapore’s direct investments in Kazakhstan stood at $960 million in 2022, while Kazakhstan’s direct investments in Singapore topped $1.3 billion.
Notably, infrastructure consultancy Surbana Jurong is involved in master planning for the Alatau Special Economic Zone, and port operator PSA is involved in the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, which starts from South-east Asia and China and runs through Kazakhstan.
Singapore state investor Temasek owns both Surbana Jurong and PSA.
The security cooperation agreement between the two countries seeks to prevent and combat transnational crime, especially in relation to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, cybercrimes, scams and asset recovery, the Ministry of Home Affairs noted.
Meanwhile, the agreement on national standards for enterprises will cover areas such as food, logistics and sustainability.
Enterprise Singapore said Singapore’s sharing of standards with the Kazakhstan Institute of Standardisation and Metrology under this agreement will facilitate knowledge exchange and spur further collaboration opportunities between Kazakhstan and Singapore businesses.
The agreement on IP rights protection will cover issues such as the exchange of information relating to IP and mutual support for seminars and conferences on the topic, the Ministry of Law separately said.
The Ministry of Education said that the education agreement paves the way for greater institutional partnerships and people-to-people exchanges between higher educational institutes in Singapore and Kazakhstan.
The final agreement, on legal cooperation, will see the countries working more closely in international commercial dispute resolution, and advocacy and legal assistance.
Ceremonial welcome
Earlier in the morning on May 23, Mr Tokayev received a ceremonial welcome at the Istana, where the first order of business was to call on Mr Tharman.
He also met Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to discuss deepening bilateral cooperation in areas such as education, food security, green energy and digitalisation.
Specifically in the area of energy, Mr Tharman noted in his speech that Kazakhstan is emerging not just as a trade and transit hub, but as a leading player in green and renewable energy in Central Asia.
PM Wong also encouraged Kazakh companies to use Singapore as a gateway to engage South-east Asia and vice versa, and engaged in a “useful exchange” with Mr Tokayev on views on global and regional developments, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said.
PM Wong hosted Mr Tokayev to lunch thereafter.
After lunch, Mr Tokayev headed to the Shangri-La Hotel, where he was joined by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat to address the Kazakhstan-Singapore Business Forum. A number of business-to-business agreements were signed at the forum.
Mr Tokayev’s visit reciprocates former president Halimah Yacob’s state visit to Kazakhstan in May 2023, which was the first by a Singapore president.
On this trip, Mr Tokayev is accompanied by a delegation that includes eight high-level officials, including Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Murat Nurtleu, Assistant to the President for External Affairs Erzhan Kazykhan and Minister of Science and Higher Education Sayasat Nurbek.
The other officials are Minister of Justice Azamat Yeskarayev, Minister of Transportation Marat Karabayev, Minister of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry Zhaslan Madiyev, Governor of the Almaty Region Marat Sultangaziyev and Adviser to the President Yerulan Zhamaubayev.
On May 24, the Kazakh President is set to deliver the 46th Singapore Lecture, organised by the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.
Titled Kazakhstan And Role Of Middle Powers: Fostering Security, Stability And Sustainable Development, the lecture will be moderated by Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean.
The state visit will be capped off by a meeting between Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Tokayev.
Diplomatic ties between Singapore and Kazakhstan were established in 1993.
On May 23, MFA said ties between the two countries continue to be underpinned by good personal ties between the leaders.
“As strategic hubs in their respective regions, Singapore and Kazakhstan can work together for mutual benefit,” MFA said.