Evolution of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy

Abstract

Kazakhstan’s foreign policy began to take shape after the disintegration of the USSR. Changed geopolitical conditions set new tasks for the state. It became necessary to elaborate new approaches to external affairs. The peculiarity of Astana’s diplomacy was the expansion of relations with non-regional states while maintaining economic and political ties with the former Soviet republics. The article concludes that the foreign course of Kazakhstan was established under the influence of country’s economic development, its internal political processes and external factors. These aspects were reflected in the fundamental documents that were adopted in Kazakhstan in the following decades. The research highlights the main stages of Astana’s foreign policy and identifies the factors that determined the development of the state. In addition, it is concluded that the diplomacy of Kazakhstan was characterized by a balanced approach, which took into consideration the economic and political opportunities of the country. In recent decades, Astana’s foreign policy has been under the increased influence of non-regional actors, which show growing attention to Central Asia and the states of the area.