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India, Kazakhstan to explore trade routes
With bilateral trade growing at a rapid pace, India and Kazakhstan are exploring various land routes, including from Afghanistan, China and Iran to give further boost to their economic relations.
With bilateral trade growing at a rapid pace, India and Kazakhstan are exploring various land routes, including from Afghanistan, China and Iran to give further boost to their economic relations.
Officials of the two countries are expected to meet later this year to explore the possibilities of using the Iran- Afghanistan-Kazakhstan route or another through China to establish trade links between the two countries.
Since Kazakhstan and India do not share borders efforts are being made step up regional cooperation to establish transport corridors, Kazakhstan Ambassador Kairat Umarov said at a seminar on "India-Kazakhstan Relations: New Horizons" organised by Indian Council of World Affairs in New Delhi.
He said the first meeting of the Joint Task force of Transportation this year in Kazakhstan.
The two sides are will discuss using the trade route through Iran and the Caspian Sea; through Iran and Afghanistan using the newly rebuilt Zaranj-Delaram Highway and another route through Xinjiang Province in China, Umarov said.
Trade between Kazakhstan and India touched 232 million dollars in the first 10 months of last year, an increase of 300 per cent over 80 million dollars in 2004.
A meeting of the Joint Commission later this year is also expected to discuss furthering cooperation in the emerging sectors of biotechnology, nanotechnology and uses of solar energy.
