Kazakhstan has made it clear that it won’t allow Russia to use its territory to dodge international sanctions, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vasilenko.
"Kazakhstan has not imposed sanctions against Russia, and Kazakhstan has not joined the sanctions against Russia," Vasilenko said in an interview with the Polish news agency RAP, as quoted by TASS.
“At the same time, we do not want our territory to be used to circumvent sanctions.”
Vasilenko emphasized that Kazakhstan’s stance is well-known and respected by both Russia and the West. He also stressed that Astana is taking steps to prevent any attempts to circumvent the sanctions, as the country wants to avoid facing secondary sanctions.
While relations between Kazakhstan and Russia remain solid, Vasilenko acknowledged that there are "various issues" given the diverse nature of their relationship as neighboring countries.
Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin clarified that although Kazakhstan doesn’t support anti-Russian sanctions, it complies with them because it’s economically beneficial.
He explained that Kazakhstan’s smaller economy can’t afford to ignore the impact of the sanctions.
However, Zhumangarin also noted that Kazakhstan won’t blindly follow sanctions if they harm Kazakh businesses. “We won’t let our producers be banned from trading,” he added.
Some restrictions intended to limit Russia’s access to goods have negatively impacted Kazakhstan. Zhumangarin pointed out that Western countries haven’t done enough to compensate Kazakhstan for the economic losses caused by these sanctions.
In September, Deputy Prime Minister Nurlan Baibazarov said only two Kazakh companies were found violating the sanctions, and they were “one-day” operations, quickly shut down.
Kazakhstan has become a major hub for goods entering Russia since Western companies left the Russian market, and banking sanctions restricted payments in major currencies. In response, Kazakhstan tightened border controls in April last year and banned the export of 106 types of sanctioned goods to Russia in October.
Since then, Russian businesses have faced growing challenges in Kazakh banks, which have worsened by the end of this summer.
Western nations imposed sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. These sanctions include export bans, financial penalties on banks and companies, and freezing $300 billion in Russian central bank assets.
