Kazakhstan refuses to help Russia circumvent Western sanctions

Kazakhstan’s authorities are against Russia using the country's territory to circumvent international sanctions.

Source: The Moscow Times, citing Kazakh Deputy Foreign Minister Roman Vassilenko 

Quote from Vassilenko: "Kazakhstan has not imposed sanctions against Russia, and Kazakhstan has not joined the sanctions against Russia. At the same time, we do not want our territory to be used to circumvent sanctions."

Details: Vassilenko said this in an interview with the Polish news outlet PAP (quoted by TASS, a Kremlin-aligned Russian news outlet).

He stressed that Kazakhstan’s position was "known and clear" to all interested parties and understood both in Russia and the West.

Vassilenko noted that all necessary measures were being taken to ensure that sanctions are not circumvented, as Kazakhstan "does not want secondary sanctions" imposed on it. He also stated that there are "no problems" in the bilateral relations between Astana and Moscow, but there are "various questions", as the relations between the two neighbouring states are "very diverse".

Earlier, Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin said that Astana did not support anti-Russian sanctions, but adhered to them "because it is beneficial from an economic point of view". "We have a small economy, of course, we will not be able to withstand the sanctions pressure," Zhumangarin explained. 

Background: Kazakhstan has no plans to join the BRICS, although President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has received such proposals.

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