ASTANA, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Chief Executive John Lee has held talks with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov to strengthen cooperation across multiple sectors.

Lee led a business delegation on a visit to Kazakhstan from June 1 to 3, during which the two sides produced and reached 43 memorandums and agreements covering aviation, finance, trade, technological innovation, digital economy and green development.

According to the Kazinform news agency, Tokayev said during the talks that the visit, the first by a chief executive of the HKSAR to Kazakhstan, carries special significance and will help strengthen cooperation across various fields, expand business ties and launch joint projects.

Bektenov said developing mutually beneficial relations with China is one of the key priorities of Kazakhstan's foreign policies, adding that Kazakhstan-China relations have reached an unprecedented level and serve as a model of good-neighborliness, mutual trust and long-term cooperation.

For his part, Lee said that Hong Kong, under the "one country, two systems" and with the advantages of a financial hub with strong connectivity both within China and with the rest of the world, highly complements Kazakhstan's industrial transformation needs and could function as a gateway for Kazakhstan to East and Southeast Asia.

As Hong Kong's largest trading partner in Central Asia, Kazakhstan could serve as a link connecting Hong Kong with Central Asian markets, Lee said, adding that strengthened cooperation under a "hub-to-hub" model would inject new momentum into high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

The HKSAR government plans to establish a Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Kazakhstan, Lee said, noting that there is significant room for growth in bilateral economic and trade exchanges and extending a welcome to Kazakh companies to develop and list in Hong Kong.

Lee further said that direct flights between Hong Kong and Almaty will be launched in the first quarter of 2027. The two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in artificial intelligence, align science and technology parks, and promote digital infrastructure development.

Moreover, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited signed agreements with the Astana Hub and the Astana International Financial Centre to strengthen cooperation in promoting the development of a green finance ecosystem, and on cross-border listings and bulk commodity trading.

The two sides will jointly invest 100 million U.S. dollars to establish a regional manufacturing center for blood purification products in Kazakhstan.

They also agreed to launch consultations on a comprehensive agreement for the avoidance of double taxation as soon as possible and initiate discussions on an agreement on the promotion and protection of investment.