Our People > Andrei Matveev

Journalist

Andrei Matveev is a journalist from Kazakhstan.

Articles

Russia China India BRICS International Relations Geopolitics Foreign Policy International Diplomacy

Kazakhstan’s Strategic Stand: Navigating BRICS Amidst Geopolitical Tensions

In recent days, BRICS - an intergovernmental organization comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE - has become one of the most critical topics on the Eurasian region's information agenda. Russian propaganda has presented the BRICS summit, which is taking place in Kazan, as a global event. However, the press secretary of Kazakhstan's president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, has stated that the republic has no plans to apply for BRICS membership in the foreseeable future, which has caused an adverse reaction in the Russian media, and led to a seemingly retaliatory Russian ban on Kazakhstan's agro-products. The Kazakhstani side, represented by the expert community, has tried to explain that its reasoning is based not only on Astana's national interest, but also on its obligations to its partners in Central Asia. Perhaps the most convincing argument is that the C5+1 mechanism is effective as a format for the region's interactions with the outside world. Therefore, it is not worth breaking this mechanism. No Central Asian country besides Kazakhstan has been invited to join BRICS, but Astana cannot afford to damage the established alliance by creating the conditions for distrust from its neighbors; Central Asia has already gone through a period of distrust. At the same time, rejecting the idea of joining BRICS, where India, Russia, Brazil and China are the founding members, does not unduly affect Kazakhstan's interactions with these powers. Kazakhstan works with China and Russia within the framework of the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) and EAEU (Eurasian Economic Union), and has signed multiple partnership and alliance agreements with Beijing and Moscow. In other words, the information hysteria that Kazakhstan will exit Russia's sphere tomorrow and join the "Global West" (a term used in the Russian media) has no basis in reality. At the same time, however, it is evident that most Central Asian countries are trying to distance themselves from Russia as much as possible, maintaining cooperation only along certain economic lines. Even banks in Kyrgyzstan, a republic maximally dependent on Moscow on several essential issues, have stopped working with Russian banks. The Kazakhstan Stock Exchange, meanwhile, recently announced the end of cooperation with the sanctioned Moscow Stock Exchange. Moreover, Rosselkhoznadzor's ban on imports of a wide range of agro-industrial products from Kazakhstan, if not a response to the refusal to join the BRICS, clearly hints that behind the scenes, economic relations between Astana and Moscow are not all that smooth. Another argument against joining BRICS was voiced not just within Kazakhstan, but also by Russian experts. Despite the organization's purportedly representative nature, which includes countries with a combined population of 3.5 billion people (45% of the Earth's population), the association has no structure. Russian analysts opposed to the Kremlin believe that BRICS is a club where one can come, sabre-rattle at the West, conclude bilateral agreements, and forget about everything until the next summit. No coordinating center monitors the implementation of any agreements reached. BRICS was conceived as an intercontinental organization, uniting similar economies in volume and GDP. Thus, it initially included Brazil, representing...

2 months ago

Russia NPP public opinion Nuclear Energy Nuclear Referendum Energy Security Atomic Energy China

Kazakhstan Enters Era of Peaceful Nuclear Energy

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's bet on a referendum to secure citizens' consent to construct a nuclear power plant has worked. The Central Election Commission of Kazakhstan announced the final results of the referendum held last Sunday, in which 63,66% of citizens eligible to vote showed up at the polling stations. 71.12 % answered “Yes” to the question on the ballot paper about consent to constructing the nuclear power plant. Organizations engaged in sociological surveys of voters at the exit polls announced similar results on Sunday night and Monday. “The exit poll of the Institute of Complex Social Studies - Astana (SOCIS-A) called the referendum participants' decision to favor the construction of nuclear power plants in Kazakhstan. 'For' voted 69.8%, ‘Against’ - 30.2%. Similar figures were shown by the Institute of Eurasian Integration exit poll ('For' - 71.8%, 'Against' - 28.2%). According to the Institute of Public Policy of the Amanat party, 72.3% of referendum participants voted in favor of the NPP construction. In comparison, 27.7% voted against,” Kazakhstani political analyst Eduard Poletayev said on his Facebook account. His colleague Daniyar Ashimbayev, commenting on the exit poll data, emphasized that Kazakhstanis have managed to overcome old phobias related to Chernobyl and tests at the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, as well as “enemy propaganda.” By 'propaganda', he means the agitation work of opponents to NPP construction. [caption id="attachment_24131" align="alignnone" width="300"] @ТСА/Kubaizhanov[/caption] “For many years, projects to return to nuclear energy were discussed, but there was always a lack of political will, and powerful foreign pressure prevented the decision necessary for the country. And even now, during the campaign period, we have seen the active work of propagandists paid from abroad to not only disrupt the plans for the construction of nuclear power plants but also to try to destabilize the situation in the country,” said Ashimbayev. Ashimbayev implies that the United States is putting sticks in the wheels of the development of Kazakhstan's nuclear industry. And the point here is not that American nuclear corporations were left off the shortlist, which Kazakhstan is considering, but in the usual policy of containment. Not Kazakhstan, of course, but Russia and China - Washington's main geopolitical rivals and competitors. Realizing this, Tokayev, after voting in the referendum and answering journalists' questions afterward, said that he would like the NPP to be built by an international consortium, presumably from the companies of those countries that were on the shortlist: Russia, China, South Korea, and France. “This is not an easy question. The government should engage in analysis and conduct appropriate negotiations. My vision for this issue is for an international consortium to work in Kazakhstan, consisting of global companies with the most advanced technologies. Further, as they say, life will show,” Tokayev said. Kazakhstan has turned another significant page in its history. In 400 days of discussing nuclear power plants - how long it took from when Tokayev first mentioned atomic power to the end of the campaign period - the president's team has managed the...

3 months ago

Security Iran Diplomacy Israel Armed Conflicts Foreign Affairs Foreign Policy

Navigating Diplomacy: Central Asia’s Strategic Balancing Act Amid Middle East Tensions

The five Central Asian republics are actively building ties with the outside world, trying to balance the influence of China and Russia in the region. For the former Soviet republics, the Middle East was, until recently, a kind of terra incognita since Moscow carried out all contacts with the area. However, since the nineties, thanks to a growing friendship with Turkey, Kazakhstan, followed by other Central Asian republics, have begun establishing diplomatic, cultural, and trade ties with the Middle East and North African countries. Another escalation in the Middle East has forced the diplomatic departments of the Central Asian countries, whilst avoiding any accusations against either side in the conflict, to inform their citizens about and the address the fate of their compatriots who have found themselves at the epicenter of events. Kazakhstan In Kazakhstan, law enforcement agencies reacted before diplomats. Shyngys Alekeshev, head of the Interior Ministry's Information Policy Department, said in response to journalists' inquiries that police in the republic have brought their patrol routes closer to synagogues and Israeli diplomatic facilities. Later, official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Aibek Smadiarov, said that no Kazakh citizens were injured as a result of the armed escalation between Iran and Israel, and urged Kazakh citizens in the Middle East to exercise caution. “The Kazakh Foreign Ministry expresses deep concern about the increasing escalation of tensions in the Middle East. We call on all parties involved to exercise restraint and refrain from using forceful methods to avoid civilian casualties and further escalation of the situation in the region, which could provoke a full-scale war. In this regard, we note the importance of taking early measures to resolve differences exclusively through political and diplomatic means within the framework of the principles of the UN Charter and international law,” said Smadiarov. According to the representative, 120 citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan, including diplomats and their family members, are registered as being present in Israel, 102 in Iran, and 139 in Lebanon. “Communication channels have been created with citizens who are in these countries. Constant communication is maintained with them, and necessary recommendations are given depending on the development of the situation in one country or another. Several times, embassies have announced the need to leave the country due to the aggravation of military and political situations. At the same time, the Ministry and authorized bodies are monitoring the situation to work out possible repatriation flights. The evacuation of our citizens is still under consideration and the special control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” said Smadiarov. Kyrgyzstan The Kyrgyz Foreign Ministry stated on October 2 that it is deeply concerned about events taking place in the Middle East, stating that it is calling on “the conflicting parties to respect the fundamental principles and norms of international law, including refraining from actions leading to an escalation of the situation in the region. The Kyrgyz Republic urges the global community to completely stop military action as soon as possible, and start...

3 months ago

Russia CSTO Diplomacy Belarus CIS Military Information Geopolitics

The Illusion of Influence: The CSTO’s Journey From Symbolic Maneuvers To Real Challenges

Accompanied by a picture of military hardware - though in reverse gear as if symbolically - today, the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization) website announced that “From 26 to 30 September, formations participating in the command-staff exercise 'Unbreakable Brotherhood-2024' with the CSTO Peacekeeping Forces are regrouping in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Contingents of CSTO troops are being sent from the Republic of Belarus, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, and the Republic of Tajikistan to the exercise area in accordance with the plan.” In reality, the history of the CSTO is one of refusals, inaction, and sometimes unexpected successes. On August 31, Armenia announced it had frozen its participation in the CSTO. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said he would not name the day when Armenia would leave the CSTO and called the decision to freeze the republic's participation in all structures of the organization correct “at this stage.” In many ways, this half-hearted decision reflects a certain amorphousness that originally characterized the CSTO. History The history of the structure's emergence reflects this lack of crystalline form. The Collective Security Treaty (CST) was signed in Tashkent between Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on May 15, 1992. Azerbaijan, Belarus and Georgia later joined in 1993. The treaty came into effect in 1994 and was set to last five years. During the 1990s and the disintegration of Soviet-era institutions, organizations such as the CSTO or the previously created Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), whose founding protocol was signed in Almaty, were created to facilitate a smooth “divorce” between the newly independent states. The CSTO was also seen as a force capable of curbing the regional conflicts which were boiling over, such as the Mujaheddin in Afghanistan. Tashkent's bet on Russian weapons in case of conflicts with the Taliban did not work out, however. From the turn of the 1990s into the 2000s, two serious fissures across the borders of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan took place; the republics fought back with their own military and weapons, in addition to Kazakhstan coming to the rescue. The Collective Security Treaty expired in 1999, with Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and Georgia withdrawing, whilst Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan soldiered on under a new pact. The remaining states later transformed the CST into the Collective Security Treaty Organization in 2002. Uzbekistan joined as a full member of the CSTO in 2006 but then flip-flopped and suspended its membership in 2012. A powerless organization While the CSTO was still developing, with President Vladimir Putin coming to power in Russia, the Kremlin's foreign policy changed substantively from that of the Yeltsin era, when Moscow remained indifferent to Nursultan Nazarbayev's integration initiatives. The new direction of Russian foreign policy was expressed in the concepts of “Russia rising from its knees” and the "gathering of lands.” Over time, this evolved into joint war games and military operations with the West in the Middle East and Africa, and for a period the Kremlin seemed to lose interest in Central Asia....

3 months ago

Sports World Nomad Games Extreme Sports World Cultural Heritage Kokpar Kok boru incident

A Bone of Contention: Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan at Loggerheads Following World Nomad Games Kokpar Final

Astana largely managed to turn the 5th World Nomad Games into an exemplary international sporting event free of politics and disagreements. Overall, the Games stood in stark contrast to the Olympics in Paris earlier this year, when the International Olympic Committee’s decision to allow a handful of athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete under a neutral flag led to calls from some counties for a boycott. However, the culmination of the Nomad Games saw an unpleasant incident at the final of the most popular event, which resulted in a fallout between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. [video width="1920" height="1080" mp4="https://timesca.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/nomad-game-2.mp4"][/video] A blow with a kamcha On September 12, an incident occurred during the Kokpar final, in which the national teams of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan met, when a player from the Kazakh team, which was underperforming, struck a Kyrgyz rider with a kamcha (whip). At this point, the game was stopped, and a squad of law enforcement officers immediately surrounded the culprit. After the offender was suspended from proceedings and given a time penalty, the game continued, and Kazakhstan, having leveled the score, won the match in overtime. The Kokpar final at the previous Nomad Games, hosted by Turkey, also ended with a marginal Kazakh victory in the derby between the long-standing rivals. However, unlike in 2022, this time the Kyrgyz national team did not accept defeat in silence. At the awards ceremony, the Kyrgyz team ripped off their silver medals, raised their country's flag, and defiantly left the arena. “We knew it would be unfair, but not to this extent. The referees were swearing at us, and the police were beating our players," the Kyrgyz captain said. "A KNB (national security) officer came up to me, showed me his ID card, took my picture, and started to intimidate me, saying I was sowing discord between nations. The pressure was strong. After the scuffle, when the score was 3-1 in our favor, we were asked to leave the game. They said the refereeing would be fair... We didn't think the Kazakhstani side would allow such disorganization and injustice. If Kazakhstanis have pride, they won't celebrate such a victory.” The press service of Kazakhstan's National Security Committee promptly denied the allegations, saying their officers were not involved in providing security for the Games. Tastanbek Yesentaev, the Chief Judge of the World Nomad Games in Astana, threatened the Kyrgyz team with a 2-3 year suspension from the competition for showing disrespect. This statement only served to further inflame proceedings. At a briefing on September 16, four days after the final, Ramis Kudaibergenov, an expert on the Kyrgyz Kok-Boru Federation, stated that the Kazakh national team committed 14 gross violations of rules in the final of the Kokpar, and given a level playing field, the Kyrgyz team would have won 5-1. “Everyone blames the referee, but the whole system is culpable. We prepared the players based on previous games, but there were so many infractions we didn't take into account. We were able to...

3 months ago