Features - The Times Of Central Asia

Viewing results 811 - 816 of 824

Features

President Tokayev Puts Kazakhstan at the Centre of International Diplomacy

In the first half of November, Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev received a series of global leaders who came to Kazakhstan for high-level meetings. French President Emmanuel Macron arrived at the beginning of the month for two days of intensive talks prior to signing significant agreements. Immediately after, the heads of state of the members of the Organisation of Turkic States attended the organisation's tenth anniversary summit meeting in Astana, hosted by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. A few days later, Russia's President Vladimir Putin, accompanied by his foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, came to Kazakhstan for wide-ranging bilateral consultations. This busy itinerary reinforces Kazakhstan’s role a pivotal player in global geopolitics. The country's diplomatic activity in recent years has become key to maintaining a delicate balance within Central Asia. Kazakhstan has also played a lodestar role in guiding the region on how to balance the increasingly fractured international system, reflecting both the country's geopolitical realities and its greater ambitions on the international stage. In this environment, Kazakhstan's President Tokayev has skilfully navigated relationships with regional players and global powerhouses. Macron’s first stop in Central Asia French President Macron's visit to Kazakhstan in early November was the first stop in his strategic tour of Central Asia. During his meeting with President Tokayev, Macron signed several important agreements concerning crucial sectors for future development and bilateral co-operation, including critical minerals, energy, pharmaceuticals and aerospace. These agreements signify France's realisation that, amidst Russia and China’s increasing influence in this region, France must strengthen its own relations with Central Asian countries. The agreements signed are not only economically substantial but also strategically astute. France is the fifth-biggest foreign investor in Kazakhstan, with existing ties in the energy and uranium mining sectors. France’s energy giant TotalEnergies has been long involved in the offshore Kashagan oilfield, while French company Orano, whose leader was included in Macron's delegation, runs a uranium mine in Kazakhstan. French energy company EDF is in contention for a contract to build Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power station. All these projects underscore France's strategic interest in its long-standing partnership with the country. As such, President Macron's visit is not merely a diplomatic courtesy but a demonstration of France's recognition of Kazakhstan's growing importance in international affairs. It also signifies a global shift of geopolitical focus towards Central Asia, where Kazakhstan stands as the leading country. Bilateral relations between the two countries are poised to develop robustly, exerting a significant influence on the region's economic and political dynamics. President Tokayev hosted a successful OTS summit The tenth anniversary summit of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) in Astana was an important moment in the history of Turkic co-operation. President Tokayev as the host (and representing Kazakhstan as a key OTS member) played a central role in shaping the summit's agenda and objectives. Two principal concerns of the gathering were to boost economic co-operation and diversify transport corridors. This emphasis aligns with the OTS members' economic development strategies to increase exports. Special attention was given to ways to support...

Features

President Tokayev Meets with UN Secretary General Guterres

Several days ago, Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev addressed the opening session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. He also met with the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who called his country "a privileged partner that is a pillar of multilateralism, a promoter and defender of peace at the global level." Guterres in response, acclaimed Kazakhstan's continuing cooperation with the UN, particularly its focus "on strengthening peace and security, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and ensuring human rights." However, Tokayev's initiatives go still deeper than that. In a rapidly evolving global landscape, President Tokayev has articulated a series of policy proposals that not only reaffirm Kazakhstan's traditional commitment to established international norms but also introduce innovative solutions to contemporary challenges. It is particularly the newer proposals that resonate deeply with the principles of the United Nations and the broader ethos of multilateralism. "A privileged partner that is a pillar of multilateralism, a promoter and defender of peace at the global level“ -General Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary on Kazakhstan Historically, Kazakhstan has been a staunch supporter of the principles enshrined in the UN Charter, demonstrating its commitment to global peace, security and co-operation. Tokayev, a diplomatic by training, has always favoured diplomatic solutions based on the UN Charter and universally recognized international law. The crisis in Ukraine has further underscored Kazakhstan's emphasis on these principles and its belief in dialogue as the cornerstone of international relations. On the environmental front, Tokayev reaffirmed Kazakhstan's commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement and its emphasis on Climate-Positive Actions. These include investments in green-energy jobs and ending fossil fuel subsidies. He also offered new initiatives such as the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) and the Project Office for Central Asia on Climate Change and Green Energy. Such progressive solutions aim to address the dual challenges of facilitating energy transition and bolstering climate resilience. The upcoming Regional Climate Summit slated for 2026 particularly underscores Kazakhstan's proactive leadership in environmental diplomacy. It showcases the country's alignment with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as its dedication to multilateral diplomacy and consensus. Regarding trade and development, Kazakhstan's proposals at the UN play to its strength as a dynamic economy in the region. The best example of this is the proposal to establish a UN Regional Centre for SDGs for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty. With its significant agricultural production, Tokayev also suggested that Kazakhstan should act as a regional food supply hub. This proposition addresses the pressing issue of food security, thus resonating with the UN's agenda. Kazakhstan's security and disarmament proposals are particularly noteworthy. While the country has always been a proponent of the Treaty on the Prohibition of nuclear weapons, Tokayev recommended a new Strategic Plan to aim for the total renunciation of nuclear weapons by 2045. This vision is in line with the UN's disarmament goals moves toward limiting nuclear proliferation. President Tokayev also put forth the idea to establish an International Agency for Biological Safety to be tasked with...

Features

Momentum builds for the Game-changing Trans-Caspian International Trade Route

The landscape of global trade is quickly evolving as international supply chains reconfigure themselves following the retreat of globalisation, driven by the deepening bifurcation of the international arena between U.S.-led and China-led subsystems. Such a time of rapid change calls for future-oriented leadership informed by strategic foresight and diplomatic acumen. This is particularly true for countries that may find themselves in delicate geo-economic positions. Responding to these challenges, Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has positioned his country as a pivotal player on the Trans-Caspian International Trade Route (TITR), a project reshaping trade dynamics between Asia and Europe through a network of railways and seaways in order to facilitate faster and more efficient trade. Successful implementation of the TITR will bring significant economic benefits to Kazakhstan, boosting trade and attracting foreign investment. It will open new avenues for economic growth, create jobs, and foster innovation. The TITR will make Kazakhstan the most attractive destination for businesses seeking to install themselves in Central Asia so as to tap into the vast Asian markets. The TITR also has strategic geopolitical significance. It is not a programmatic part of the China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which concentrates on a "northern" route through Russia and a "southern" maritime route. The new momentum behind the TITR comes at a time when the northern route suffers from the economic fallout of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Beyond economics, the TITR has already elevated Kazakhstan's political stature. The European Union (EU) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) have formally recognised this shift. At a recent joint conference in Almaty, with wide participation from many Central Asian players, these two entities selected what they call the "Central Trans-Caspian Network", running through southern Kazakhstan, as the most sustainable of three container-transit options for linking Central Asia and Europe. The EU and EBRD foresee a seven-fold increase in transit volumes from 18,000 "twenty-foot equivalent units" (TEUs, a standard industrial measure) to 130,000 TEUs by 2040. It is hardly a coincidence that this date coincides with the "Turkic World Vision" statement adopted by the Organisation of Turkic States at their 2019 summit in Baku. The EU and EBRD’s study is country-specific and proposes seven soft connectivity measures and 32 hard infrastructure investment needs across five Central Asian countries. The study provides for such practical measures as digitalisation of transport documents, improvement of interoperability, enhancement of the public-private partnership (PPP) environment, facilitation of trade, liberalisation of markets, improvements to tariff-setting mechanisms and the increase of funding for asset maintenance. Country-specific priority investment needs for Kazakhstan include Almaty-Khorgos and Aktau-Beyneu railway double-tracking, expansion of several terminals and railway stations, and Aktau port capacity expansion, amongst other projects. The involvement of the EBRD in this study also represents a "seal of approval" for international financial institutions to participate in building out the corridor. The detailed EU-EBRD work identifies specific projects in specific geographical regions and already represents a preliminary feasibility study for them. It outlines key actions for the development of the network and its...

Features

Kazakhstan and Chinese Premiers Meet to Discuss the New Silk Road

Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev expressed his intention to strengthen bilateral ties and enhance co-operative endeavours with China during his May 2023 state visit, where he was received by China’s President Xi Jinping, who reciprocated the sentiment. This diplomatic exchange took place in the framework of the first-ever in-person summit of Central Asian leaders hosted on Chinese soil, in Xian, a political capital of several historic Chinese imperial dynasties, including the Tang. This summit is a regional element of a wider Chinese initiative seeking to augment the country’s global standing and influence across the Asia, Africa and Europe by revitalizing ancient trade routes and pioneering new ones. With its multilateral framework, it was primarily aimed at fostering and enhancing the various transport corridors along the “New Silk Road”. As part of this ambitious vision, the assembled leaders also discussed the potential for intermodal transportation via the strategically located ports of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan on the Caspian Sea. Another agenda point was a prospective rail line extending through Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan that has been in the planning phase for numerous years. In one projected scenario, this rail line could eventually extend through northern Iran to Turkey, whence onward into Europe. However, that would also be a potential threat to the viability of the Trans-Caspian International Trade Corridor (TITR), in which Kazakhstan has been investing heavily in co-operation with Azerbaijan. Many observers saw this event as a strategic manoeuvre by Beijing, calculated to establish and nurture ties in what is traditionally considered Russia’s sphere of influence. This Chinese shift in focus towards Central Asia is of particular significance since the nations there, including Kazakhstan, are seeking alternate sources of investment following the imposition of economic sanctions on Russia as well as Moscow’s diversion of resources to its war of aggression against Ukraine. That is surely true, but the circumstances driving this strategic shift are multifaceted and cannot be attributed to a single cause. Indeed, it is notable that this summit occurred as a stand-alone event rather than as an informal sidebar to a larger event like a meeting of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation, of which Russia is also a member. It was thus a clear signal that China views Central Asia as an important region for projecting its influence independently of Russian concerns. The shift in China’s foreign-policy focus towards Central Asia could potentially reconfigure the geopolitical balance in the region in the longer term, transforming the power dynamics in the region. Yet Kazakhstan and President Tokayev surely do not wish to become as dependent on China as they were once dependent on Russia. The creation of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) in 2021 at Kazakhstan’s initiative, on the basis of the Turkic Council founded in 2009 likewise at Kazakhstan’s initiative, clearly signifies Kazakhstan’s wish to main the foundational “multi-vectorial” strategy that has characterized its foreign policy since independence in 1991. It would perhaps be helpful to Kazakhstan, and the countries of Central Asia in general, if the EU and the United...

Features

Kazakhstan’s Deft Diplomacy

All the headlines in Central Asia, and many outside of it, are highlighting the first-ever summit between China and the five Central Asian countries, which will be held in the northwest Chinese city of Xi’an from May 18 to May 19. The summit is scheduled to be attended by all presidents of the five Central Asian countries, including Kazakhstan's Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. According to international observers, the event represents the potential for Chinese influence to further expand into what used to be the formerly Russian preserve of Central Asia. President Tokayev has led the way for a liberation from all foreign interferences prioritizing Kazakhstan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as reducing economic dependencies during the first 20 years of Kazakhstan's independence. During this time, he held many key state posts, including foreign minister and prime minister. In those years, he implemented the so-called “multi-vector” diplomacy that has been copied by other Central Asian countries and aspiring middle powers around the world. Originally, this diplomacy covered five directions: the Commonwealth of Independent States, with a special mention of Russia; the Asia–Pacific region, especially China; Asia, especially Turkey; Europe, especially Germany, and the Americas, especially the United States. Those initial country-specific orientations were based on hopes for foreign direct investment in the newly independent economy. This multi-vector approach, extended over the years with an emphasis on multilateralism, has also allowed Kazakhstan to play a significant role in global diplomacy. It has hosted numerous high-level peace negotiations, including the Syrian Peace Talks in Astana, asserting its position as a neutral broker and peacekeeper. Kazakhstan’s multi-vector diplomacy not only maintains a balance among global powers but also leverages these relationships in favor of its national development and regional stability. China is a significant player in Kazakhstan's economy, primarily through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), of which Kazakhstan has been called the "buckle". Astana has skillfully managed its ties with Beijing, making certain to avoid the debt trap that has ensnared other countries, such as Sri Lanka. Yet it is a measure of Kazakhstan’s economic and diplomatic maturity that the relationship has now gone far beyond the original starting points. To avoid any sensitive overdependence on China, which would be as negative for Kazakhstan today as its overdependence on Russia was earlier, Kazakhstan's diplomacy under Tokayev reaches out in new directions. Thus, during those same two days when Tokayev will be in China for the above-mentioned summit, Kazakhstan will also be hosting the second European Union–Central Asia Economic Forum. This Forum builds upon a first meeting that took place in Bishkek in 2021. The EU side at the Forum will be chaired by Executive Vice President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis, building on the renovated EU Strategy on Central Asia that was launched in December 2020. The event is scheduled to “take stock of progress made so far and discuss ways forward on policy, programs, and investment needed to develop a more integrated and interconnected regional market engagement”. The main focus is on...

Features

The Significance of Kazakhstan’s 2023 Legislative Elections

The recent parliamentary elections held on 19 March in Kazakhstan represent the fourth time that the country’s voters have gone to the polls in a little over two years, and the third time within the past nine months. While the treadmill of elections in 2022 manifested the country’s march towards democratic change, the expected headwinds of voter fatigue produced a turnout of 53 percent, a figure still on par with Canada, which averages 54 percent voter turnout. Background: The President’s reform program The outgoing parliament and its lower chamber - Mazhilis, had transformed the political environment ahead of the new elections when it passed legislation adopting the constitutional amendments approved by the voters in the 5 June 2022 referendum. These amendments included important reforms going far beyond the electoral rules and indeed restructured the entire political system. Specific to the elections, they introduced the possibility of self-nomination, easier party registration, and a lower electoral threshold for parties to enter parliament. The electoral reform was part of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s strategy to mobilize disenfranchised sectors of the country’s electorate. The composition of the new Mazhilis has been reshuffled and leaves Tokayev poised to make further progress and, by finally ridding the legislature of the holdover deadwood from the Nazarbayev era, to institutionalize the thoroughgoing political, economic and social reforms over the longer term. Recent electoral reforms put to test in latest elections The OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODHIR) sent a team of more than 300 long-term and short-term observers who monitored the elections across the country. The team’s work was mostly unhindered in the performance of its duties. While expressing some reservations, the ODHIR team noted that the reforms had “increased choice for voters” and “brought elements of competitiveness into the political arena”, adding that contestants were able to campaign “actively and freely”. In a preliminary statement they also concluded that the parliamentary elections were held in a context of reforms “introduced to bring Kazakhstan closer to holding elections in line with international standards and OSCE commitments.” This evaluation augurs well for Kazakhstan’s international reputation under Tokayev. The relatively low turnout level of the election at 54 per cent clearly indicates that Kazakhstan is moving away from the previous practice of mass mobilization to ensure survival of the authoritarian regime. But it also indicates some voter fatigue. As mentioned above, this is the third time in nine months that the electorate have gone to the booths, and the second time in a little over two years that they have elected a new Mazhilis. Overall, the results appear to be an endorsement of the creation of a broader political field with more horses in the race, which is in fact one of Tokayev’s intended reforms. The ruling Amanat party won, but with some difficulty. Its majority is less than that which Nazarbayev's Nur Otan party used to have, but also it was not labelled as the “president's party”. As per recent constitutional amendments, the president is now above...