East Kazakhstan Region, an associate member of NEAR, sent a letter to the NEAR Secretariat on August 17, stating that a delegation led by Governor Nurymbet Saktaganov would visit Korea from September 14 to 16 to attend the 「Korea–Central Asia Summit」. The delegation expressed its hope to take the opportunity to meet with NEAR Secretary-General during the visit.
East Kazakhstan Region highly valued NEAR’s contribution to strengthening partnerships across Northeast Asia regions. It expressed hope that the meeting would provide an opportunity to exchange views on future cooperation measures between East Kazakhstan Region and NEAR, discuss areas of mutual interest, and explore new areas for cooperation.
NEAR Secretary-General Lim Byung-jin welcomed Governor Nurymbet Saktaganov and his delegation’s visit to Korea and said that he plans to meet with the East Kazakhstan delegation during their stay in Seoul to discuss ways to strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation between East Kazakhstan Region and NEAR.
Meanwhile, East Kazakhstan Region of Kazakhstan joined NEAR as an associate member at the NEAR High-Level Working Committee held in Ulan-Ude, Republic of Buryatia, Russia, in June this year. It became Kazakhstan’s second NEAR associate member, following Turkistan Region.
East Kazakhstan Region is located in eastern Kazakhstan, with a population of approximately 720,000 and an area of 283,967 square kilometers. Its capital is Oskemen. Major industries include metal ore mining, precious and non-ferrous metal production, and food processing. In particular, the region is regarded as a key center of Kazakhstan’s mining and metallurgical industries.