Astana,Washington sign five-year plan for military cooperation

By Azernews

By Kamila Aliyeva

Washington hosted defense consultations between representatives of the defense departments of Kazakhstan and the United States.

The military delegation of Kazakhstan was led by Deputy Defense Minister, Lieutenant-General Talgat Mukhtarov, Kazinform reported.

During the event, current and prospective issues of military cooperation between Kazakhstan and the U.S. were discussed.

Another plan for military cooperation for 2018-2022, which defines the areas of cooperation for the forthcoming five-year period, was signed.

In addition, meetings with representatives of the U.S. Department of Defense, the Bureau of the National Guard, the U.S. Army and the National Defense University of the United States were held in the course of the visit.

The basis for the Kazakh-U.S. military and defense cooperation are laid out in the Memorandum of Mutual Understanding and Cooperation in the field of Defense and Military Relations between the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the United States Department of Defense signed in 1994.

The military cooperation with the United States is developing within the framework of the NATO Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP), which is concluded with the NATO non-member countries like Kazakhstan. Central Asian nation also cooperates with the NATO within the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC).