ISTANBUL
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Kazakh counterpart Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will discuss all areas of bilateral cooperation during their upcoming meeting in Moscow, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.
“Our trade and economic cooperation with Kazakhstan is multifaceted, covering virtually every possible area of cooperation. Therefore, all areas of cooperation will be discussed in detail without fail. They are all mutually beneficial,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a press briefing in Moscow, according to state news agency TASS.
Peskov’s remarks came in response to a question on whether Putin and Tokayev would discuss oil and gas cooperation despite recent US sanctions against Russian energy companies Rosneft and Lukoil.
The US imposed the new sanctions last month over Moscow’s “lack of serious commitment” to a peace process to end the Ukraine war.
Peskov said other topics will also be on the agenda, noting the presence of trilateral gas projects involving Russia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan.
“Natural gas supplies are very important. President Putin attaches great importance to this trilateral cooperation,” Peskov said, responding to a query if oil and gas cooperation will be discussed between the two leaders.
The Kremlin announced a day earlier that Tokayev would conduct a state visit to Moscow at Putin’s invitation on Nov. 11-12, where they will hold talks and jointly address an interregional cooperation forum in Kazakhstan via videoconference.
Kazakhstan’s president wrote in an article to the Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper published earlier Tuesday that the two countries plan to sign a declaration during the negotiations, elevating their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance.
Peskov also touched on recent contacts between Tokayev and US President Donald Trump, saying it would be of "great interest" to the Russian side if the Kazakh president deemed it necessary to inform his Russian counterpart about the content of the talks.
Last week, Tokayev and his Central Asian counterparts took part in the 10th summit of the C5+1 diplomatic platform in Washington, DC. The platform brought together the US and five Central Asian nations – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan – to discuss regional economic and security cooperation.
Ahead of the summit, Kazakhstan and the US signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in critical minerals.
Astana, which already has diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv, also joined the Abraham Accords, a series of US-brokered agreements launched in 2020 to normalize relations between Israel and Arab countries.
Relations with Syria
Peskov also commented on dialogue with Syria, saying Moscow is building its relations with Damascus.
In this regard, the spokesman reminded that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa recently had a "very meaningful and successful" visit to Moscow, where he held talks with Putin.
He also conveyed that he does not think Syria's recent contacts with the US will raise difficulties in the dialogue between Russia and Syria.
Peskov expressed hope that Moscow and Damascus' bilateral track will "develop independently."
Sharaa met US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, in what marked the first visit by a Syrian leader since the nation gained independence nearly 80 years ago.