How will this war in Ukraine affect Kazakhstan?
I think the military conflict in Ukraine affects the global economy, the economy of every country in the world, but for Kazakhstan it is particularly serious because it is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, so international sanctions are negatively affecting our economy. We do not join or support these international sanctions, but at the same time we have a duty not to allow our territory to be used for the circumvention of these sanctions by Russia or even by other countries. In the meantime, we are in consultation with the European Commission and the US government on how to avoid these side effects of so-called secondary sanctions against our companies and our economy. So now we’ve put in place some rules that will allow our companies to get around these secondary sanctions and at the same time we’re working with our partners to provide us with the strategic materials that come from the global market that are in some way or other consuming Russian mineral resources, metals, can replace agricultural products. products, etc. Also, many Western companies that have closed or suspended their business in Russia are moving to Kazakhstan, as we are in the same economic zone as the Eurasian market and provide easier market access throughout Central Asia.
Are you saying that the Kazakh economy is resilient despite this international crisis?
Yes, we try to be.
At the same time, with the Kazakh population being very diverse and having millions of people of Russian descent and hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian descent, is the conflict somehow reflected in everyday life?
There are 110 ethnic groups living in Kazakhstan. We have Kazakhs who live in Ukraine and Ukrainians who live in Kazakhstan, so when this conflict started, relatives came to our country from Ukraine and we basically gave them hospitality. And as is known, there were also a lot of people, especially young people, who came to Kazakhstan from Russia in recent months, more than 800 thousand. Many of them left for other places, but about 200,000 young Russians stayed behind to work in the country, the majority in sectors related to information technology. I think this is also kind of an opportunity to develop the technology sector with the younger generation.
How would you describe the current relationship between Kazakhstan and the European Union?
We have signed and ratified a partnership and cooperation agreement with the EU, so we meet regularly. I would say that the EU is the largest investor in the Kazakh economy, having already invested EUR 160 million since the start of the agreement. I think we also have a good relationship with individual European countries. We also have a very good personal relationship between the leaders of the European Union and our President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. For example, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, visited Kazakhstan last year and we organized the Central Asia Summit with the EU. So, together with the leaders of our neighboring countries, we discussed our perspectives for cooperation between the European Union and Central Asia. We have reached an agreement between our President and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen; at COP 27, our Prime Minister also signed a cooperation agreement with Mrs. Von der Leyen in the field of rare earths. Now both parties are working on the implementation of these agreements. This means that we are likely to expand our supply of mineral resources to the European market in the near future.
As for the political changes in Kazakhstan since last year, the presidential elections have already taken place in November 2022 and now, in March, the legislative elections will take place. Are the reforms going well?
Yes. Our president introduced a new concept of building a fair Kazakhstan. Last year there was a referendum in which our citizens supported the changes in the constitution, in which the term of office of the president will be seven years and non-renewable, which I think is a political innovation in our region. At the same time, I think it has strengthened the presence of political parties in parliament. Now there will be parliamentary elections, on March 19, and with new procedures – 70% of the chamber will come from political parties and 30% will come from separate mandates from the districts. So there will be representation through the political parties and at the same time the regions will also be represented in parliament.
Kazakhstan’s anti-nuclear policy is famous, as the country decided to give up the nuclear weapons inherited from the USSR. If people talk so much about the possibility of nuclear war these days, is it still a priority for Kazakhstan to enforce that policy?
Yes. Since the beginning of our independence in 1991, when we divested our nuclear arsenal, we have been strong advocates of non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament worldwide. We believe that the possession of nuclear weapons carries the risk that they can be used or even taken over by, for example, terrorist groups or other radicals.
As for Kazakhstan’s international image, it is seen as an attractive country for investment; as a largely tolerant Islamic nation; it also has the prestige to fight nuclear proliferation, but there were violent riots early last year. Do you think Kazakhstan’s image today is positive?
I think so. We have a multi-vector foreign policy, which means we build relationship with all countries, Russia, EU, China, United States. Kazakhstan’s positioning in the international dimension is that of strongly supporting nuclear disarmament and the non-proliferation process while defending interreligious dialogue between civilizations. That is why last year we organized the Congress of Religious Leaders, in which Pope Francis participated. So we also started the process called CICA, the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia. Our goal is to bring together a capital of confidence-building measures among all states in the region. At the last summit, last October, we took the decision to transform this platform into an international organization for the entire Asian continent. I believe all these initiatives show that Kazakhstan is trying to have a mutually beneficial relationship between all countries in the world.
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Source: DN
