When you visit Astana, you know there is no other city like this in the world: its daring architecture, its location in the endless steppe, its extreme climate. Its architecture is an image of what the country is: the landbridge between East and West, between Europe and Asia.

When we have visitors, we always impress them by showing them Astana first, then we give them a bird’s eye view of the city and its surroundings from Bajterek tower, and finally we drive them to the steppe around Astana. They admire the skyline when we return to the city. Recently I gave a live telephone interview from Astana to a Dutch radiostation, and I satisfied their immense curiosity about Kazakhstan and its new capital’s anniversary in July.

The Netherlands Embassy was much pleased to present a Dutch tulip alley with 120.000 tulips to the city of Astana last year, on the occasion of the opening of our new office in this city. They were blooming for the first time in May! One tulip was named after Astana.

More than anything else, Astana is the symbol of a new, multiethnic nation and of the new generation of Kazakhstani, who are rightfully proud of their country, who are open to the world and will so make their country better every day.

I wish all the people of the capital, and of Kazakhstan a wonderful anniversary and a bright future!