Pakistan, Kazakhstan move closer to Gwadar Port access deal

Pakistan and Kazakhstan are expected to conclude an agreement later this year granting Astana access to Gwadar Port, officials said on Wednesday.

According to sources, a high-level Kazakh delegation will visit Islamabad in the second week of September to finalise arrangements ahead of the planned agreement, which may be signed during the Kazakh president’s scheduled visit to Pakistan in November.

Officials said Kazakhstan intends to establish a goods terminal at Karachi Port for exports to European Union countries and the United States. However, Pakistan has proposed that a terminal be set up at Gwadar Port to maximise its strategic potential.

Discussions are also expected to cover possible road and rail linkages, with Pakistan pushing for a consortium with Central Asian states to jointly develop the maritime sector.

A statement issued by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs said Federal Minister Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry met Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Yerzhan Kistafin, on Tuesday. Both sides expressed a strong interest in expanding cooperation in maritime trade and logistics.

The minister suggested launching joint ventures at Karachi and Gwadar ports and highlighted opportunities within the Gwadar Free Zone. He noted that Pakistani ports could provide Kazakhstan and other landlocked Central Asian nations vital access to markets in the Persian Gulf, Africa and Southeast Asia.

Ambassador Kistafin welcomed the initiatives and confirmed that a ministerial-level delegation, led by Kazakhstan’s communication minister, would soon visit Islamabad to hold detailed discussions. He said Astana was eager to utilise Pakistani ports not only for its own trade but also to serve the wider Central Asian region.