Letter of congratulations from President Donald Tusk to President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev

Met dank overgenomen van Europese Raad i, gepubliceerd op dinsdag 11 juni 2019.

On behalf of the European Council, I congratulate you on your victory in the presidential elections in Kazakhstan.

I would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm the European Union's commitment to strengthened relations with Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan is an important partner for the EU; the EU-Kazakhstan Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement anchors our substantial cooperation, which we look forward to deepening further.

The EU's new Central Asia Strategy outlines further possibilities for enhancing the cooperation between the EU and Central Asia. We welcome Kazakhstan's role in the regional cooperation context and in promoting dialogue - in Central Asia and beyond - with peace, stability and prosperity as priorities.

I would also like to thank you for your welcome to Kazakhstan during my recent visit to Central Asia. I appreciated the possibility to exchange views with you and with First President Nazarbayev, and I was moved by my visit to the memorial ALZHIR on the National Day of Remembrance of Victims of Political Repression.

The European Union looks forward to deepening our bilateral cooperation with Kazakhstan under your leadership, based on a commitment to democratic principles and human rights.

I wish you every success in your term in office.