International obligations to restrict re-export of dual-use goods to Russia Kazakhstan is in full compliance. This was stated by Kazakhstan’s Minister of Trade and Integration Arman Shakkaliev, reporting in the country’s parliament on Astana’s actions to stop supplying sub-sanctioned goods to Russia.
As Interfax-Kazakhstan reports, the question to the minister was asked in the context of the recent visit to Astana of the European Union’s special envoy on sanctions, David O’Sullivan. “Mr. O’Sullivan was satisfied with the level of organization of work related to the implementation of our international export control obligations. There is a dynamics of reduction of supplies of a certain group of goods, attention was also drawn to this, it was discussed in detail, figures were given. (…) I can say that today Kazakhstan fulfills its obligations properly”, said Shakkaliyev at a briefing in Parliament.
The Minister assured journalists that over the past six months in Kazakhstan has not been identified a single company that would supply goods to Russia to circumvent the sanctions imposed on it. And that the reason for this is the increased attention of controlling services of Western countries. “The trade turnover was, we do not hide it, but you know, from the side of our Western partners, integration associations lists are adjusted”, explained the head of the Ministry of Trade.
Kazakhstan de facto joined the technological sanctions against Russia in October 2023, thus terminating the existence of one of the main hubs for the supply of electronics and high-tech goods to Russia, bypassing the restrictions imposed by Western countries. In total, through Kazakhstan and other hubs of parallel imports (Georgia, Armenia, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan), Russia imported $14.1 billion worth of goods from the European Union alone in the first half of 2023.
Last October, Astana announced its intention to put an end to “card tourism” of Russian citizens. On the eve of 2024, the country blocked the Sputnik24 portal, which allowed to watch Channel One, Russia 1, Russia 24, NTV and Russia Today. And already in the new year the national operator of satellite and Internet broadcasting TVCOM stopped broadcasting Russian TV channels of the family of PKVS Kazakhstan LLP. The list includes First Channel CIS, Time: Distant and Close, Telecafe, Music of the First, Karusel, O!, Let’s go, Dom Kino, Dom Kino Premium, Pobeda and Bober.
