[Herald Interview] Kazakhstan keen to learn from Korean police: deputy minister

Kazakhstan is eager to learn from Korea's public and personnel administration in law enforcement, said Saitbekov Aidar, Kazakhstan’s deputy minister of internal affairs, in an interview with The Korea Herald on Thursday.

Saitbekov was in Korea to attend the UN Public Service Forum in Songdo, Incheon, from June 24 to 26, an annual meeting since 2003 that gathered around 2,000 officials from about 100 countries to discuss innovations and challenges in public administration.

Kazakhstan’s interest in public administration aligns with Kazakhstan’s declaration of 2024 as the year of enhancing human resources in the Kazakh police.

According to Saitbekov, within the framework of the declaration, Kazakhstan wants to modernize the candidate selection system, give regular support to employees’ professional development, and form an effective talent pool for leadership positions.

“Korea is renowned for its high level of security, actively implementing modern technologies, and an established level of social interaction with the public,” he said.

He believes that understanding Korean police methods will benefit Kazakhstan's security efforts.

“I am confident that understanding the methods and practices used by Korean police will be beneficial for our work in ensuring security in Kazakhstan,” he said.

“We aim to strengthen cooperation and learn from Korean civil servants and law enforcement agencies,” said Saitbekov, recalling recent high-level meetings such as the visit of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to South Korea in 2021 and the meeting between President Tokayev and President Yoon Suk Yeol last month as catalysts.

According to South Korea's Ministry of Personnel Management, Kazakhstan and Korea agreed to full-scale cooperation in personnel administration and signed an MOU in Astana during President Yoon's visit to Kazakhstan last month.

The agreement includes enhancing civil servants' capabilities, sharing systems, and exchanging development experiences.

Kazakhstan, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme, has established the Astana Civil Service Hub, a multilateral cooperation platform with 43 participating countries for personnel administration.

Saitbekov said that Kazakhstan and Korea are also working to draft a memorandum of cooperation and an intergovernmental agreement on readmission.

He recalled the visit of Kazakh Minister of Internal Affairs Yerzhan Sadenov to Seoul in October 2023 as a stepping stone in public administration exchanges.

Kazakhstan wants to study Korea’s public administration practices and the methods of citizen safety and security.

“Modern challenges require law enforcement agencies to use advanced technologies, and Korea has substantial experience in this area, which we are keen to study,” Saitbekov noted.

"We are extremely interested in the methods used to ensure the safety of citizens and maintain a high level of security in the country," he underlined.

Meanwhile, he also mentioned the K-Silk Road initiative and vowed to support Korea through the Korea-Central Asia Cooperation Forum.

The initiative aims to strengthen supply chain cooperation with resource-rich Central Asian countries and is the Yoon administration's third regional strategy, following the Indo-Pacific Strategy and the Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative.

Korea wants to enhance cooperation with Central Asia to link Asia and Europe.

Within the framework of the Korea-Central Asia Cooperation Forum, law enforcement ministries of Central Asian countries are to work with Korea, said Saitbekov.

The forum, launched in 2007 as a Korean initiative, serves as a dialogue platform to bolster cooperation in economic, cultural, and other areas, enhance ties between Central Asian countries and Korea and promote regional cooperation.

“We will provide full support for this initiative and aim to be at the forefront of this cooperation,” the deputy minister said.

“We face many modern challenges that require us to use advanced technologies to enhance security,” he stressed.