Kazakhstan won’t enforce anti-Russian sanctions if they harm its industries, vice premier says

Kazakhstan will not assist Russia in circumventing sanctions, although it does not support them. At the same time, the country does not intend to comply with certain economic restrictions if doing so would harm its industries, according to Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin. He noted that Kazakhstan’s position on this issue has long been clear.

«There are certain goods produced in our country that fall under the sanctions list. We will not impose restrictions on these goods because they support significant labor forces and, in some cases, entire single-industry towns where production enterprises are located. This is essential,» Zhumangarin explained in an interview with Russian journalist Pavel Zarubin.

He further noted that sanctions could severely impact Kazakhstan’s economy, a fact well understood by Western nations.

Earlier this year, Zhumangarin said that while Kazakhstan does not support U.S. and EU sanctions against Russia, it must comply with them due to economic benefits. At the time, he mentioned that Kazakhstan has a task force regularly communicating with U.S. and EU authorities to ensure compliance with anti-Russian sanctions.

In June 2022, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated that Kazakhstan must comply with sanctions to avoid the risk of facing secondary sanctions.

In February 2024, two Kazakhstani companies, Elem Group and Da Group 22, were subjected to secondary sanctions by the U.S. and EU due to their ties with Russia. The Ministry of Trade of Kazakhstan acknowledged the restrictions, claiming that these companies had ceased import and export activities as early as May and June 2023, respectively. Furthermore, by February, one of the firms had already entered into the process of liquidation.