Astana, November 14, House of the Mazhilis. Today, the Chairman of the Mazhilis Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Security Maulen Ashimbayev met with the Deputy of the Finnish Parliament, member of the Finnish delegation to the OSCE PA Ilkka Kanerva.

The sides noted the 20^th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and Finland as a significant event, and, along with this, as Maulen Ashimbayev emphasized, the 20^th anniversary of Kazakhstan's accession to the OSCE, which plays a key role in international affairs.

                The conversation focused on the International Exhibition EXPO-2017 hosted by Astana, in which Finland, as our MP noted, took the most active part.

                Finland has identified participation in the Exhibition as one of its priorities, as Ilkka Kanerva noted. And they are satisfied with the results of the exhibition, the guest emphasized.

                According to Maulen Ashimbayev, innovative development, investment policy, and, especially, the experience of Finland in education, including school education, which is of interest to Kazakhstan, are attractive for our country.

                Marking the prospects for further cooperation between the countries, the Finnish MP said that today's meeting is a look into the future. Praising the development of Kazakhstan, he said:

- from abandoning nuclear weapons to the membership in the UN Security Council, you are taking great steps.

Speaking of the potential for expanding the ties, including for the growth of trade turnover, creation of joint ventures both in Kazakhstan and in Finland, the MPs noted the role of parliamentary diplomacy, having agreed on the need to promote inter-parliamentary cooperation both at the level of parliamentary friendship groups and at the level of parliaments.

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The meeting was attended by Kuanysh Sultanov, the Deputy of Mazhilis and head of the inter-parliamentary cooperation group "Kazakhstan-Finland".

(Disseminated by the Press Office of the Mazhilis – 746303. Photo by Zhaslan Kuspanov)