Kassym-Jomart Tokayev spoke at the first meeting of the Central Asia – Republic of Korea summit and proposed creating a joint venture in Almaty focused on the critical materials sector. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Sputnik Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan's resource potential
The head of state noted that Kazakhstan has a substantial resource base and ranks among the world's leaders in rare earth metal reserves.
"Kazakhstan has a substantial resource base and ranks among the world's leaders in rare earth metal reserves. Notably, all ten minerals that Korea classifies as strategic are found in our country's mineral and raw materials base," the president said.
Cooperation with the Institute of Technology Development
Tokayev is confident that combining Kazakhstan's resource potential with Korea's technological capabilities opens broad prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation.
During the visit, the head of state welcomed the agreement reached to establish a joint center for the study of rare and rare earth metals in Almaty with the participation of Korea's Institute of Technology Development.
Building a full production cycle
The president announced his proposal to create a joint venture and clarified its goal.
"Our goal should be to build a full production cycle – from exploration and extraction of critical raw materials to their deep processing and the production of high value-added goods. This covers the production of semiconductors, microelectronics, batteries, components for electric vehicles and robotics... We propose creating a Kazakh-Korean joint venture," he said.