Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has secured a series of agreements worth €4 billion with Kazakhstan during an official visit to Astana. The deals span multiple sectors, including oil and gas, renewable energy, and water management. Meloni’s stop in Astana came after a visit to Uzbekistan, the first leg of her Central Asian tour.
Meloni emphasized the importance of the visit, stating it was “not merely a formality, but substantial.” She highlighted Italy’s early engagement with Central Asia, noting, “Italy was the first EU nation to have decided to invest in relations with Central Asia and its individual member states, setting up a stable format for the sharing of ideas.”
Her comments followed the recent EU-Central Asia Summit held in April, which she said had elevated regional relations to a new level.
Kazakh President Qasym-Jomart Tokayev welcomed Meloni and praised the strong trade ties between the two nations.
“Italy is Kazakhstan’s third largest trading partner and the largest within the European Union. The volume of trade has reached 20 billion dollars (€17.6bn),” Tokayev said. He affirmed Kazakhstan’s commitment to expanding economic cooperation, stressing that his country attaches “great importance to the development of trade between our states.”
