Kazakhstan–Pakistan relations

Pakistan-Kazakhstan relations
Diplomatic mission
Pakistan Embassy,; Astana	Kazakhstan Embassy,; Islamabad
Envoy
Ambassador Dr. Sajjad Ahmed Seehar	Ambassador Yerzhan Kistafin

Kazakhstan–Pakistan relations refer to the bilateral relations between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan was among the first few countries which recognized Kazakhstan when it attained independence in December 1991. Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1992 during an official visit by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev to Pakistan.^[1] Pakistan and Kazakhstan enjoy cordial relations based on a common approach towards world issues as well as mutual understanding, Islamic brotherhood and goodwill for each other.^[2]

In 2015, President Nursultan Nazarbayev himself stated that "I will never forget that Pakistan is one of the first countries to support our independence movement."^[3] As Kazakhstan is a landlocked country, Pakistan provides natural land routes and connectivity to the Eurasian heartland with the Arabian Sea and South Asia. Kazakhstan is an emerging market for Pakistani goods.^[4] Both countries have more than 35 MOUs in different fields.^[5]

Country Comparison

Common Name	Pakistan	Kazakhstan
Official Name	Islamic Republic of Pakistan	Republic of Kazakhstan
Coat of Arms
Flag
Area	881,913 km² (340,509 sq mi)	2,724,900 km² (1,052,100 sq mi)
Population	212,742,631^[6]	18,448,600
Population Density	244.4/km² (633/sq mi)	7/km2 (18.1/sq mi)
Capital	Islamabad	Astana
Largest Metropolitan Area	Karachi (14,910,352)^[7]	Almaty (2,039,376)
Government	Federal Parliamentary Republic	Unitary Presidential Republic
Current Leader	Shehbaz Sharif	Kassym-Jomart Tokayev
Official Languages	Urdu	Kazak
GDP (nominal)	$338.237 Billion^[8]	$164.207 Billion
GDP (PPP)	$1.195 Trillion^[9]	$534.271 Billion
GDP (nominal) per Capita	$1,650	$8,763
GDP (PPP) per Capita	$5,839	$28,514
Human Development Index	0.562 (Medium)	0.800 (Very High)
Military Expenditures	$9.6 Billion^[10]	$2.4 Billion

History

Today's region of Pakistan and Kazakhstan had links since ancient times. Both Kazakhstan and Pakistan were interconnected via ancient silk routes. Due to historic ties, Central Asia including Kazakhstan has a great influence on modern-day Pakistan. During 1920–39, many Kazakhs being compelled by Soviet atrocities, had migrated to India. In response, the Central Council of the AIML, the highest decision-making organ of the party, in its meeting under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jinnah (founder of Pakistan), adopted a resolution on February 23, 1942, at Delhi, in which the party expressed a deep extreme concern and worry about conditions of the Kazakh migrants, and demanded the then government to do proper arrangements and provisions for Kazakhs. Consequently, they were settled peacefully in the North Western parts of India (the northern areas of current Pakistan).^[11]^[12]

Pakistan was among the first countries to recognize Kazakhstan. The diplomatic relations between the modern states of Pakistan and Kazakhstan were further tightened since the visit of Nursultan Nazarbayev of Islamabad in 1992 during which he signed the many important documents that established the legal basis for the development of bilateral relations. Pakistan and Kazakhstan also share the same time zone.^[5]