10-year visas for Kazakhstanis: US Ambassador Krol

The USA plans to offer 10-year business and tourist visas to Kazakhstanis, Tengrinewsreports citing the US Ambassador George Krol.

Krol gave a public speech on Kazakhstan-U.S. bilateral relations to the students of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University on April 16. According to Krol, the relationship between Kazakhstan and the United States form a strategic partnership in furtherance of peace, security, economic development and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.

The Ambassador noted the growing number of Kazakhstanis travelling to the USA. Currently, the US Embassy issues 5-year visas and plans to start issuing 10-year visas to Kazakhstanis in a few months.

Krol also noted Kazakhstan's role in the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, international cooperation in education and peacekeeping work in the Central Asian region and outside of the region.

Earlier, Deputy Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken also spoke about security in Central Asian mentioning Kazakhstan's role in the region. “Kazakhstan has been and continues to be a leader in nonproliferation and global security. (…) Kazakhstan, along with Belarus and Ukraine, took the very brave and important step of relinquishing the weapons that it inherited when the Soviet Union dissolved. Kazakhstan has also fostered stability in its own region, contributing to Afghanistan's future by funding the Afghan National Security Forces and police and enabling 1,000 Afghan men and women to study at Kazakhstani universities," Bliken is quoted as saying by U.S. Department of State.

Krol added that the US government supported Kazakhstan's initiatives in diversification of trade routes, stimulation of customs cooperation in the region and efforts to join neighbouring countries as members of the WTO. Moreover, the Ambassador stressed the importance of Kazakhstan's stance on shared water resources in Central Asia.

The Ambassador noted the rapid development of infrastructure in Kazakhstan that was sure to attract more American businesses and investors to agriculture, manufacturing and processing industries.

Source: tengrinews