„There is significant untapped potential for mutually beneficial cooperation between Bulgaria and Kazakhstan cooperation“. Viktor Temirbaev, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Bulgaria, said this in an interview for FAKTI. In the last year and a half, since he has been ambassador in our country, a number of projects have been implemented in various fields – starting with the educated, passing through culture and reaching the economy. What makes Bulgaria attractive for the ninth largest country in the world, what are the plans for the development of bilateral relations? You can read the answer to these and other questions in the interview that Ambassador Temirbaev gave to FACTS.
Mr. Ambassador, a number of political and socio-economic reforms have been carried out in the Republic of Kazakhstan in recent years. Briefly tell us about them, as well as the changes that have occurred?
You mark correctly – in the last 5 years, Kazakhstan has undergone large-scale transformations. Our political system has changed – the role of the parliament was strengthened and the responsibility of the government increased. We have stabilized the system of checks and balances between the various sectors of power. The role of parties in society has grown. We have developed mechanisms that allow citizens to openly express their opinions and be socially active. In general, our political and social culture has undergone significant changes.
We have carried out major political reforms. The formula “Strong President– influential parliament – responsible government”. The Constitutional Court began to work, the elections of deputies from the lower house of parliament and local representative bodies were held according to new rules (the threshold for party registration was reduced 4 times, and for entering parliament - from 7% to 5%, as it was a certain quota of 30% for women, youth and persons with special needs, the return of the column "against all" and others, for the first time elections of akims (mayors) of regions and cities of regional significance were held.
We also adopted a new economic policy and took certain measures in the social sphere.
The concept of a “hearing state” was introduced. The goal was to increase the sensitivity of the state apparatus to the needs of the population, to develop the best technologies and practices for communication between the government and society. The salaries of medical workers, teachers in schools, colleges and kindergartens have been increased. A law was passed to transfer funds from the National Fund to all children. After turning 18, the children will have the right to use the savings for two things: to improve housing conditions and/or to pay for their education. The country's strategic goal is to double its GDP by 2029 (up to USD 450 billion).
Of course, all these reforms will not change our country overnight, but without a doubt they will contribute to building a Just Kazakhstan - a prosperous society with a vibrant, dynamic and competitive political system.
In a word, we are consistently moving forward, striving to become an advanced country.
Bulgaria is a small country. What is interesting about the ninth largest country in the world?
There are no small and large countries for Kazakhstan.
We see Bulgaria as a reliable friend and an important partner of Kazakhstan in Southeast Europe. Our cooperation covers both bilateral interactions and interactions within the framework of the European Union and international structures such as the UN and the OSCE. We develop our relationship on the basis of friendship and mutual trust. I am pleased to note that our bilateral program is not hampered by any contentious or problematic issues.
In addition, we have significant untapped potential for mutually beneficial cooperation. First of all, this concerns trade-economic, investment and transit-transport issues.
How do you evaluate your work during the first year and a half of your stay in Bulgaria? You held a number of meetings with people in areas such as higher education, energy, BAS, trade and economic relations. What are the first results?
To begin with, I would like to emphasize that we are actively working in all areas where we see potential for deepening cooperation between our countries. I want to touch briefly on the areas that you personally highlighted in your question.
Let's start with the last area mentioned in your question – trade and economic relations. For me, as an ambassador, one of the priority tasks is to create conditions for the growth of mutual trade at least to the level of 2011, when this figure reached 512 million USD. The situation is different now. Not surprisingly, world crises and global geopolitical tensions have a direct impact on our mutual trade. However, we try to make maximum use of existing cooperation mechanisms.
The latest data on mutual trade show positive dynamics. According to the statistics of Kazakhstan, in the first 4 months of 2024, trade between Kazakhstan and Bulgaria amounted to 73.6 million USD, which is 2.7 times more than the same period last year (27.0 million USD).
Our goal is to unlock potential in other areas of the economy. In this context, we hope to hold a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission for Economic Cooperation in Sofia this year.
As for the cultural and educational sphere, we managed to increase the dynamics of cooperation in a number of spheres, including higher education. In this regard, I held meetings with the Minister of Education and Science G. Tsokov, the rectors of leading higher education institutions in Bulgaria such as the Higher School of Insurance and Finance, the Technical University – Sofia, the American University in Bulgaria and SU “St. Kliment Ohridski“, as well as rectors of almost all 9 universities and higher education institutions of the second largest city in Bulgaria – Plovdiv.
Cooperation in the scientific and academic fields has also been strengthened. More specifically, a year ago I had a meeting with the head of BAS academic Yu. Revalski, as a result of which he participated in the International Forum “Astana“ in June 2023. On the sidelines of the forum, a meeting was organized with the President of the National Academy of Sciences under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan K. Zakaria, during which the first bilateral Memorandum of Cooperation for NAS in Europe was signed.
At the end of April 2023, you presented the investment opportunities in Kazakhstan. What was the answer?
Attracting foreign investment is one of the priorities set by the President of Kazakhstan Kassam-Jomart Tokayev to the government. Currently, our country attracts 70% of all investments coming to Central Asia, which makes us the leader in the region by this indicator.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides various preferences through the conclusion of investment contracts, including exemption from customs duties and VAT on the import of raw materials and materials, provision of plots and other support measures. In 2023, 67 investment contracts were concluded with a total value of approximately USD 1.5 billion.
According to our data, only in the first quarter of 2024, 2 million USD of investments were attracted from Bulgaria to Kazakhstan, which confirms the interest of Bulgarian companies in our market.
For a year and a half of work, I met with over 40 companies from Bulgaria in various sectors of the economy: agriculture, transport, energy, mechanical engineering, IT and industry.
We see significant interest from Bulgarian business in joint work with Kazakhstan, especially in the field of agriculture, transport and logistics. We actively interact with any interested company and provide all necessary support for the implementation of joint projects.
You paid special attention to a number of Bulgarian municipalities – Plovdiv, Burgas, Varna and Shumen. Please share your results?
„A country is not only the capital, and the capital is not the whole country.“ One of the priority areas of work for me and for the embassy as a whole is the development of relations between the individual regions of the two countries.
Interregional cooperation plays a key role in strengthening trade, economic and cultural ties.
To date, we have already achieved significant results: twinning memorandums have been signed between Karaganda and Nessebar, Uralsk and Blagoevgrad, Pavlodar and Burgas. At the embassy's suggestion, work is currently underway on the signing of a Memorandum to establish fraternal relations between Almaty and Varna, and in 2004 a Protocol of Intent for Cooperation was signed. And the next step should be the signing of the Memorandum.
In addition, similar documents are being considered between Shymkent and Plovdiv, Astana and Sofia. The institution “Honorary Consuls” plays a key role in the development of interregional cooperation. Today, two honorary consulates of Kazakhstan are already functioning in Varna and Plovdiv.
This fall, we plan to hold an opening ceremony for the 3rd Honorary Consulate of Kazakhstan – in Blagoevgrad. All necessary documents are already ready.
The issue of opening a consulate in Nessebar is also being considered. Intentions to expand the network of honorary consulates are related to the growing interest in deepening cooperation between the regions of Kazakhstan and Bulgaria.
These steps not only help strengthen diplomatic relations, but also create new opportunities for economic growth and cultural exchange between our peoples.