The “historically friendly” relations between Georgia and Kazakhstan and cooperation across “various sectors” were discussed on Friday in a meeting between Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kazakhstan, according to Agenda.ge.

The Georgian Parliament cited Tokayev as saying Kazakhstan considered Georgia a “strategic partner”, adding “Georgian people, history and culture are highly respected in Kazakhstan”.

He also said the latter was evidenced by a growing number of Kazakh tourists in Georgia.

The officials discussed bilateral cooperation and highlighted the importance of the first official visit of the Georgian Parliament Speaker to Kazakhstan for deepening the existing relations between the two countries.

The meeting focused on the growing importance and potential of the Middle Corridor, a logistics route connecting Central Asia to Europe via the South Caucasus.

Tokayev also congratulated the Georgian national football team on reaching the final stage of the upcoming European Football Championship.