After 35 years of independence, Kazakhstan’s relations with the United States are gathering unprecedented momentum. What factors shaped this development?

Editor’s Note: On October 29, Center for the National Interest Senior Fellow Andrew Kuchins interviewed the ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Magzhan Ilyassov, to discuss the past, present, and future of US-Kazakhstan ties, the outcome of the recent C5+1 Summit, Astana’s multivector foreign policy, and Kazakhstan’s Afghan strategy. The following conversation has been edited for style and clarity.

Andrew Kuchins (AK): Mr. Ambassador, you arrived in Washington about a year ago, and I do not think I am exaggerating to say that this past year has been the most fruitful in the 35 years of US-Kazakh relations. What do you see as the key highlights, and to what do you ascribe this remarkable flourishing of relations?

Magzhan Ilyassov (MI): First of all, thank you for the opportunity to speak with you. It is a great honor and responsibility to represent Kazakhstan in the United States at such an important moment in our bilateral relationship.

It has been exactly one year since I arrived in Washington, DC, and I could hardly have imagined a more eventful start to my assignment. Almost immediately, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev came to Washington, DC, for the C5+1 Summit and met with President Donald Trump. During the visit alone, Kazakhstan and the United States announced commercial agreements worth more than $17 billion—a clear indication that our political dialogue is producing tangible economic results.

Today, we are witnessing highly dynamic and positive momentum in our partnership with the United States. Our countries maintain a regular and substantive political dialogue, including contacts at the highest levels. In recent months alone, President Tokayev visited Washington, DC twice (in November 2025 and February 2026), underscoring the high degree of mutual trust and shared commitment to further advancing bilateral cooperation. 

At the same time, our cooperation is increasingly extending beyond the traditional bilateral agenda. Kazakhstan’s decision to join the Abraham Accords reflects our longstanding commitment to dialogue and peaceful coexistence, while our participation in the Board of Peace demonstrates our readiness to contribute constructively to international efforts aimed at promoting peace and stability.

This year also carries special symbolic significance, as Kazakhstan and the United States celebrate the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Over these decades, our countries have built a strong and trusted partnership. The United States was among the first countries to recognize Kazakhstan’s independence and today remains the second-largest investor in our economy.

The economic foundation of this relationship is substantial. US investments in the region mostly come to Kazakhstan, with cumulative investments exceeding $60 billion, while over 600 American companies operate in our market. For decades, American companies have played a vital role in the development of Kazakhstan’s energy sector, industry, high technology, and infrastructure. 

So, to your question about what explains this remarkable momentum, I would point to several factors. 

First, there is strong political will at the highest level on both sides. There is also a strong personal connection between President Tokayev and President Trump. The two leaders understand each other well and share a pragmatic approach focused on concrete results. I believe this has played an important role in building trust and driving the relationship forward.

Second, our strategic and economic interests are increasingly converging. The United States is looking for reliable partners, diversified supply chains, access to critical minerals, new trade and investment opportunities, and stronger connectivity across Eurasia. Kazakhstan, for its part, is seeking investment, advanced technologies, access to global markets, and deeper economic diversification. There is a very natural complementarity between these priorities.

And third, I think Washington increasingly recognizes Kazakhstan and Central Asia for what they are today: not simply a region between major powers, but a region with its own strategic priorities, economic potential, resources, connectivity, and growing geopolitical importance.

AK: Just recently, the foreign ministerial meeting of the C5 +1 took place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. What are the biggest takeaways from these meetings for Kazakhstan?

MI: The C5+1 itself is a particularly important success story for Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan played an important role in the creation of the format, having first proposed the idea of a dedicated dialogue between the five Central Asian states and the United States. Since its launch, C5+1 has evolved over the past decade from a diplomatic dialogue into an increasingly practical platform for regional cooperation with the United States.

This momentum is visible on the ground as well. Astana hosted the first-ever C5+1 Critical Minerals Dialogue and the C5+1 SI Conference. We have welcomed US congressional delegations and a US trade mission to Kazakhstan, while contacts between our governments and business communities have intensified significantly.

And the main takeaway from the Samarkand meeting is clear: 

1. The meeting reaffirmed the United States’ strong commitment to Central Asia. We welcome Washington’s growing engagement and its recognition of the region as an important economic and strategic partner.

2. And perhaps most importantly, we see a shared focus on concrete economic opportunities. For Kazakhstan, these include developing the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, or the Middle Corridor, strengthening supply chains, and expanding cooperation in critical minerals, energy, and advanced technologies.

Our goal is not simply to export raw materials. We want to attract American investment and technology, develop value-added industries, and create new opportunities for our businesses and people.

3. The meeting provided additional momentum to our bilateral relationship with the United States. The discussions between our Foreign Minister and Secretary of State reinforced our commitment to advancing the Enhanced Strategic Partnership, particularly ahead of the upcoming G20 Summit in December.

Ultimately, the success of the C5+1 should be measured not by the number of meetings we hold, but by the investments we attract, the projects we deliver, and the opportunities we create for our people.

As Central Asia’s largest economy and a major regional hub for trade and investment, Kazakhstan is determined to play a leading role in driving this agenda forward. We want to turn our shared priorities into concrete results, benefiting not only Kazakhstan but also the entire Central Asian region.

AK: Let’s go into greater detail on the new dynamism in Kazakh-US economic and commercial relations. From my previous work in the region, I know that Kazakhstan and its neighbors have long desired much stronger commercial ties with US businesses, and it seems that the Trump administration has really leaned into promoting these ties. Could you review the highlights in this area and how we can build on this foundation?

MI: Kazakhstan sees the strongest opportunities for new US capital in sectors that directly match America’s current economic priorities.

Companies such as Chevron and ExxonMobil have been investing in Kazakhstan for decades, and we are now expanding that relationship into manufacturing, critical minerals, and digital technology. This broader agenda brings together the administration’s focus on American industrial competitiveness and Kazakhstan’s investment in new industries, infrastructure, and skills.

Kazakhstan’s growing economy gives this partnership considerable room to expand. Our recent constitutional reforms demonstrate that economic and institutional modernization must move together. We have already built an investment environment that feels familiar and easy to navigate for international business. The Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) operates under principles of English common law and has its own independent court and arbitration center. 

Kazakhstan’s special economic zones offer preferential conditions for manufacturing and export-oriented industries, including customs and tariff advantages designed to support long-term industrial projects and regional supply chains.

President Tokayev noted that Kazakhstan will continue to ensure a transparent business climate and effective tools for investors. This proven model is also reflected in the development of Alatau City—a flagship urban development project, where an Investment Court based on the English common law model is planned for commercial disputes. The city will become an integrated legal, digital, and financial ecosystem designed to attract capital and drive sustainable growth in the most innovative and promising sectors of the economy.

On October 28, in his State of the Nation Address, President Tokayev launched a nationwide construction program, accompanied by major proposals on investment, transport, energy, artificial intelligence, and industrial diversification. 

To support the country’s continued development, he also announced plans to allocate approximately $14 billion from the National Fund through 2029 to modernize infrastructure that is expected to create employment opportunities for hundreds of thousands of people. 

He cited IMF projections that our GDP would approach $400 billion this year, making Kazakhstan the world’s 47th-largest economy, with GDP per capita exceeding $19,000. For American companies, this opens up further opportunities to supply equipment, technology, and engineering expertise, building on the partnerships we already have.

We have already seen how shared interests can translate into commercial agreements. 

A good example is our $4.2 billion agreement with Wabtec, described by the US Department of Commerce as the largest rail equipment deal in US history, which is expected to support more than 11,000 American jobs. For Kazakhstan, it means 300 modern freight locomotives and long-term maintenance services that will strengthen our railway capacity, improve transport efficiency, and support our growing role as a major transit hub between Asia and Europe.

In the critical minerals sector, we are advancing a landmark tungsten project involving an estimated $1.1 billion investment. The project will strengthen US supply chain security by providing reliable access to one of the world’s largest tungsten deposits, a strategically important resource for American industry, for the next 30 years. We are confident that this project will strengthen the Kazakhstan-US cooperation in the mining sector and create new opportunities for similar partnerships across Central Asia.

American technological leadership also creates opportunities to develop new businesses together. This October, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang made his first visit to Kazakhstan. Together with US-based Firebird AI, we are developing a $10 billion data center project based on NVIDIA technologies. The project is designed to scale to up to 1 GW of capacity and to become one of the region’s most significant AI-computing hubs and a foundation for high-performance cloud, AI training, and data-processing services. 

We are also the world’s largest uranium producer, accounting for about 40 percent of global output, and have supplied 28 percent of uranium deliveries to US civilian nuclear power reactor operators in 2025. 

Agriculture offers equally practical opportunities. Kazakhstan has long been a breadbasket of the region, and modernizing this sector creates demand for American machinery, irrigation systems, and processing technologies. John Deere’s established presence, growing engagement with Lindsay and Reinke, and investment projects by PepsiCo and Mars show the breadth of that opportunity.

Expanding this partnership means working with companies to secure financing, develop infrastructure, and reach new customers. Kazakhstan offers American companies a market for their machinery and technologies, opportunities to develop strategic mineral resources, and a base for production and expansion across Central Asia. 

Reliable transport connections, including the Trans-Caspian route, strengthen these opportunities by linking production in Kazakhstan with customers across Eurasia. As American companies expand their businesses and Kazakhstan develops its industrial and technological capabilities, both countries gain a lasting economic interest in the partnership.

AK: A core requirement for trade, commercial, and investment relations is the hard and soft connectivity between Kazakhstan and global markets. Transit corridors are an essential aspect of a successful multi-vector foreign and economic policy. Goods have no value if they cannot get to where demand for them is. There are three wars taking place now around Kazakhstan that are deeply complicating trade and economic ties: Russia-Ukraine; US-Israel-Iran; and, often forgotten, Afghanistan-Pakistan. How is Kazakhstan adjusting to these disruptions? 

MI: Kazakhstan is certainly not immune to the geopolitical disruptions affecting our broader region. As a landlocked country at the heart of Eurasia, we have always understood that reliable access to global markets is a strategic necessity.

Furthermore, we believe connectivity can serve a broader purpose. We welcome President Trump’s efforts to advance peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, or TRIPP, is a good example of how new infrastructure can both open trade routes and create a shared economic interest in lasting stability. 

Kazakhstan is interested in developing this initiative. We see TRIPP as a natural complement to the Middle Corridor, and Kazakh companies have expressed interest in contributing their expertise to railway construction and infrastructure modernization.

Today, roughly 85 percent of land transit between China and Europe passes through Kazakhstan. We are continuing to expand our road and rail networks and increase transit capacity, with the Middle Corridor at the center of this effort. As traditional routes have faced increasing uncertainty in recent years, the importance of this alternative has grown considerably. 

The results are already visible. In 2024, cargo volumes along the Middle Corridor increased by 62 percent to approximately 4.5 million tonnes. In 2025, container traffic grew by a further 36 percent. Transit time along the corridor has also fallen from around a month to approximately two weeks. These are tangible improvements that make the route increasingly attractive to international business.

The president also called for stronger ground-handling and cargo infrastructure to unlock the country’s potential as an international air freight hub.

But infrastructure alone is not enough. A shipment can cross thousands of kilometers efficiently and still lose valuable time at a border. That is why we are working on digitizing customs procedures, improving coordination, and removing administrative bottlenecks. For Kazakhstan, the future of connectivity is both physical and digital.

We’re implementing digital tools to ensure that paperwork and customs procedures do not hold up physical freight. Through our Digital Trade Corridor and Tez Customs solutions, we’ve automated declarations and enabled real-time tracking. As a result, Tez Customs can cut clearance time from 12 hours down to just 30 minutes. That means less bureaucracy, zero delays, and much higher efficiency.

And in the age of artificial intelligence, connectivity is no longer only about moving goods. It is also about providing reliable, resilient routes for the exchange of data.

This October, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and President Ilham Aliyev officially launched the Trans-Caspian Fiber-Optic Cable Line. Stretching almost 380 kilometers (236 miles) across the Caspian Sea, with a capacity exceeding 400 terabits per second, it creates an additional digital connection between Asia and Europe through Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. In practical terms, we are giving the Middle Corridor a digital backbone alongside its transport infrastructure. 

As you can see, the Middle Corridor is an important part of this effort, but it is by no means our only route to global markets. Kazakhstan is home to 13 international transport corridors— five railway and eight road corridors.

So, to answer your question, our priority has always been to expand and diversify our transport network, rather than depend on any single corridor. Having several options allows us to adapt when disruptions occur.

AK: Kazakhstan has famously followed a multi-vector foreign policy since its founding in the early 1990s. The best practitioners of multi-vector foreign policies are those states, like Kazakhstan, that maintain good and constructive ties with all of the major players on their periphery and, in your case, outside of the United States, I have in mind China, Russia, Europe, and let’s include India and Turkey as well. How has Kazakhstan adapted its approach to these challenges in the current geopolitical environment?

MI: Kazakhstan pursues a balanced and constructive foreign policy that fully reflects its national interests and is aimed at contributing to a more just and equitable international order.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, a professional diplomat, has preserved the continuity and accumulated experience of Kazakhstan’s diplomacy while adapting it to a more fragmented and confrontational international environment.

The Concept of the Foreign Policy of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2020–2030 identifies sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national interests as central priorities. As Kazakhstan’s economic potential and international standing have grown, its foreign policy has become more self-confident and increasingly defined by strategic autonomy rather than simple equidistance between major powers. Kazakhstan maintains close relations with Russia, China, the United States, and its Central Asian neighbors, while deepening cooperation with the European Union and partners across the Middle East, wider Asia, and Africa.

At the same time, Astana is assuming a more active international role as a responsible middle power capable of facilitating dialogue, upholding the principles of the UN Charter, promoting nuclear disarmament and contributing to international stability. Its growing diplomatic profile is also supported by domestic modernization, national unity and economic resilience.

Thus, since 2019, Kazakhstan’s foreign policy has undergone a gradual rethinking. While Kazakhstan seeks constructive engagement with all key partners, the emphasis has shifted to advancing its own strategic priorities as a more confident and capable state.

AK: As you know, Afghanistan is a personal interest of mine. What is Kazakhstan’s perspective on the integration of Afghanistan into a “Greater Central Asia,” as Fred Starr would say? What are Astana’s priorities here?

MI: We are familiar with Professor Fred Starr’s concept of a “Greater Central Asia,” and we share the underlying idea that Afghanistan has long been historically and economically linked to the region.

Kazakhstan has consistently supported the development of Afghanistan as an independent, united, and peaceful state, in accordance with international law and the UN Charter. We believe that Afghanistan needs engagement rather than isolation, and that its stability and sustainable development are essential to the security and prosperity of the broader region. 

Our approach combines humanitarian assistance with deeper economic and regional engagement. Kazakhstan has regularly provided humanitarian aid for more than 20 years to the Afghan people, including food, medicines, and essential supplies.

At the same time, we are working to expand trade, transport, energy, and humanitarian ties with Afghanistan. We support the development of southern connectivity routes, including the Trans-Afghan Corridor and the TAPI gas pipeline, and are interested in railway projects that can strengthen links between Central and South Asia. 

A coordinated approach to development among Central Asian countries towards engagement with Afghanistan is also of interest. We believe that greater regional coordination can help translate shared interests into practical initiatives, particularly in trade, connectivity, infrastructure development and humanitarian cooperation.

The meeting of the Regional Contact Group of Special Representatives of Central Asian Countries on Afghanistan, held in Astana on February 16, 2026, demonstrates Kazakhstan’s commitment to advancing practical cooperation within this framework.

Regarding recognition of Afghanistan’s de facto authorities, Kazakhstan continues to be guided by relevant UN Security Council resolutions. At the same time, we believe Afghanistan should be more actively integrated into regional cooperation. The UN Regional Centre for the Sustainable Development Goals for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty can play an important role in advancing this engagement.

AK: Mr. Ambassador, you have provided our readers with a comprehensive tour d’horizon for our readers of the many significant developments that have taken place in US-Kazakh relations during your first year in residence in Washington. We are very grateful for your time and thoughts.

About the Participants: Magzhan Ilyassov and Andrew Kuchins

Magzhan Ilyassov is the ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United States. He previously served as Kazakhstan’s ambassador to the United Kingdom (2022–2025) and the Netherlands (2016–2020), as well as the nation’s permanent representative to the United Nations (2020–2022). He earned a Master’s degree in public administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in 2013.

Andrew C. Kuchins is a senior fellow at the Center for the National Interest and an adjunct professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He previously served as president of the American University of Central Asia and the director of the Carnegie Moscow Center, as well as the Russia and Eurasia Programs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He is the author or editor of seven books and has published columns for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and many other media outlets.

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