Islamabad, 7 February 2022 (TDI): The Kazakh Ambassador H. E. Yerzhan Kistafin presented the Kazakhstan national award to Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary during the launching ceremony of the proceedings of the global Al-Farabi forum.
AWARD FOR DR. CHOUDHARY FROM KAZAKHSTAN
The Ambassador said that it is his honor to present the national award of Kazakhstan to Prof. Dr. M. Iqbal Choudhary. He said that Dr. Chouhdary is representing the modern scientific community to promote science and this award is being given in recognition of his services to Kazakhstan.
Dr. Choudhary said that he has been engaged with Kazakhstan since 1988 for the development of capacity in chemistry and biochemistry. He helped Kazakhstan in establishing many laboratories and institutions. He has supervised many Ph.D. students of Kazakhstan and he is teaching chemistry courses.
Dr. Choudhary said that this is very important to celebrate the contributions of great Muslim scholars, such as Abu Nasr Al-Farabi. He said that proceedings present the best writings on the contributions of Al-Farabi. The objective is to build the legacy of this great scholar for the new generation.
Dr. Naazir Mahmood said that the proceedings of the Al-Farabi forum contain multi-dimensional aspects of the work and life of the great scholar – Al-Farabi. He proposed that it should be translated into many other languages so that a vast number of people can get benefit from this account.
Dr. Naazir said that we can learn four things from this composition. First, live a very active life, second, transform from speech community to discourse one, third, convert from discourse culture to composition culture to write your discourse, inculcate the culture of openness and tolerance to nurture the culture of debate and learning from each other, fourth, spend more in science – science includes both material and social sciences.
Dr. Khurshid Hasanain, Advisor COMSTECH introduced the Global Al-Farabi Forum and its proceedings and said that COMSTECH is in process of completing the science, technology, and innovation profiles of the OIC member states.
PAKISTAN-KAZAKHSTAN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS
The Kazakh Embassy in Pakistan mentioned that Pakistan was one of the first countries that recognized them as an independent country; in 1991. On February 24, 1992, both established diplomatic relations and Pakistan opened its Embassy.
The Kazakh Embassy started its operations in Islamabad in 1994. The government named Aitmukhambetov Tamas Kalmukhambetovich as the first Ambassador to Pakistan. As mentioned by the Embassy, Kalmukhambetovich was then a prominent lawyer and diplomat.
Furthermore, the Charge d’Áffaires, Arman Tynybek runs the Embassy and the current Ambassador is Yerzhan Kistafin. Kistafin also assumed office in mid-May 2021. The Ambassador of Pakistan to Kazakhstan is Sajjad Sehar, since June 23, 2020.
FURTHER COOPERATION BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND KAZAKHSTAN
In 2011, Kazakhstan supported Pakistan’s candidacy to gain a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council. Moreover, in 2016, Pakistan supported Kazakhstan’s candidacy for non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council for 2017-2018.
Moreover, Pakistan supported the request of Kazakhstan to enter the Asia-Europe Forum (ASEM) and the World Trade Organization. Their bilateral relations have the Agreement on establishing diplomatic and also consular relations between Kazakhstan and also Pakistan; and the Declaration on principles of relations between Kazakhstan and Pakistan.
Moreover, the main mechanism for implementing trade and economic cooperation is the Kazakhstan-Pakistan Intergovernmental Commission on trade and economic, scientific, technical, and cultural cooperation.
The Embassy then mentioned that the Commission has two chairs; the first one is the Kazakh Minister of Trade and Integration Bakyt Sultanov, and also the second one is the Pakistani Economy Minister, Omar Ayub Khan.
In 2020 the volume of bilateral the trade volume between Kazakhstan and Pakistan amounted to 45 million 556.8 thousand dollars. Out of that amount, Kazakhstan’s imports amounted to 29 million 410.1 thousand US dollars, and exports 16 million 146.7 thousand US dollars.
