Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's April 15-16 visit to Kazakhstan marked an important step forward in India's ties with the rising Central Asian nation. Relations between the two countries have gained momentum since January 2009, when Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev was the chief guest at India's Republic Day celebrations.
India and Kazakhstan established diplomatic relations in February 1992, with then-Indian Prime Minister Narasimha Rao paying a visit to Kazakhstan in 1993. Prior to his 2009 visit, Nazarbayev had visited India in 1996 and 2002.
In a positive development, Singh and Nazarbayev signed a "Joint Action Plan" on furthering the strategic partnership between the two countries through 2014 during Singh's visit. The plan envisages cooperation in a range of areas including hydrocarbons, civilian nuclear energy, pharmaceuticals, health, agriculture, space, information technology, cybersecurity, high-tech and innovative technology and cultural exchanges. But the good news cannot obscure the fact that trade ties between the two countries are disappointing, at best. Bilateral trade stood at around $314 million in 2010, an increase of around 24 percent over the 2009 figure of $253 million.