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1 [1] (March 17, 2025)

handle is hein.crs/kzkhstn0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service Inforrning the legislative debate since 1914 Updated March 17, 2025 Kazakhstan Overview Kazakhstan, a U.S. partner in areas such as counterterrorism, regional security, and nuclear nonproliferation, is a strategically situated country with significant hydrocarbon and mineral resources. It shares borders with Russia to the north and the People's Republic of China (PRC, or China) to the east, and three Central Asian neighbors to the south (see Figure 1). Although sparsely populated, Kazakhstan is the world's ninth-largest country by land area and the most economically developed country in Central Asia. Previously a republic of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan became independent in 1991. Since then, the authoritarian government has introduced market reforms, developed the energy sector, and moved to diversify its economy. Following unprecedented unrest in January 2022, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev moved to consolidate power and announced a reform program aimed at creating a New Kazakhstan. Some Members of Congress have expressed interest in expanding U.S. engagement with Kazakhstan and supporting its political reform process; other Members have expressed concern about Kazakhstan's human rights record. Kazakhstan pursues a multi-vector foreign policy, seeking to balance relations with major powers while actively participating in international organizations. In light of the Russia-Ukraine war and related U.S. and international sanctions on Russia, Kazakhstan has sought to further diversify its diplomatic and trade relationships. Political Background Since 2022, reforms introduced by Tokayev have aimed to restructure Kazakhstan's political system and annul the privileged position of former President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who held office for nearly three decades until his 2019 resignation. While authorities present ongoing reforms as moving the country in a more democratic direction, some analysts express skepticism as to the degree of political pluralism Kazakhstan's government may allow. Tokayev, seen as Nazarbayev's hand-picked successor, won a snap presidential election in 2019. Nazarbayev maintained significant power until January 2022, when initially peaceful demonstrations over economic issues became the largest and most violent protests in Kazakhstan's history, leaving over 200 dead. Many analysts contend that figures associated with Nazarbayev took advantage of genuine popular protests to pursue an intra-elite power struggle, with the alleged aim of sidelining Tokayev. As Tokayev moved to control the unrest, he sought assistance from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia- led security alliance to which Kazakhstan belongs. In the first deployment in the organization's history, a CSTO mission of roughly 2,500 mostly Russian troops spent about two weeks in Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan held a constitutional referendum in June 2022, a move some analysts see as part of Tokayev's efforts to reduce his predecessor's influence. Voters approved changes curtailing some presidential powers and removing mentions of Nazarbayev from the constitution. Tokayev said the constitutional changes would shift Kazakhstan from a super-presidential form of government to a presidential republic with a strong parliament. Following additional legislation extending the presidential term from five years to seven and establishing a one-term limit, a snap presidential election was held in November 2022, two years ahead of schedule, with Tokayev winning 81% of the vote. Observers from the Organization for Security and Co- operation in Europe (OSCE) deemed the electoral contest as lacking competitiveness. In March 2023 snap parliamentary elections, the OSCE noted elements of competitiveness, but also flagged significant procedural irregularities. Figure . LMan of Kazakhstan Source: Us. Human Rights and Civil Society. According to the U.S. State Department, human rights issues in Kazakhstan include problems with the independence of the judiciary; restrictions on freedom of expression and media freedom; interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; restrictions on political participation; and government corruption. The nongovernmental organization Freedom House assesses that authorities have consistently marginalized or imprisoned genuine opposition figures and rates the country Not Free. Economic inequality and a perceived lack of government accountability have fueled grassroots discontent in recent years. In 2011, protests by oil workers in the western town of Zhanaozen turned violent, leaving at least 15 demonstrators dead and dozens injured after police opened fire. In 2016, large-scale protests broke out against proposed changes to the country's land code, which critics feared would lead to a Chinese takeover of agricultural )s://crsreports.conqress.

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