Экономические науки/2. Внешнеэкономическая деятельность
Nurtanova A.O., Nabiev E.N
Academician E.A. Buketov Karaganda State University, Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan and international relations
with European Union: forms of cooperation
The EU
and Kazakhstan have been partners since the country's independence, sharing a
dialogue which has continually expanded. The diplomatic relations between the
EU and Kazakhstan, which began over 15 years ago, have developed into an active
and comprehensive long-term partnership. In the early years of cooperation this
dialogue initially focused on trade and investment, but since 2009 many
other important issues have been included, such as energy, transport as well as
justice and home affairs [1].
Forms
of cooperation
After
the first agreement between the EU and Kazakhstan on textiles and nuclear
safety was concluded in 1996, the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA)
between the European Union and Kazakhstan entered into force in 1999, opening a
new era of EU-Kazakhstan cooperation. A number of other agreements were
subsequently concluded in areas of mutual interest,
including energy, transport and nuclear cooperation.
In
2007, EU Foreign Ministers further enhanced political relations with the
adoption of the EU and Central Asia: Strategy for a new Partnership. The
Strategy aims at enhancing the EU's relations with the region as a whole and
with each of its individual countries [2]. It sets priorities for cooperation
in six main areas: democracy and human rights; education; trade and investment;
energy and transport; the environment and combating common threats and
challenges. In 2008 Kazakhstan respectively adopted a national strategy called
«Path to Europe» which sets out an ambitious programme of reform to bring
Kazakhstan closer to European and international standards in a multitude of
spheres.
The
political dialogue between the European Commission and Kazakhstan is held in
various formats: at the level of EU-Central Asian foreign ministers meeting,
Cooperation Council, Cooperation Committee, Sub-Committees on specific issues
such as trade, energy and transport, justice and home affairs and since 2010 an
annual Human Rights Dialogue. Political leaders also meet on the sidelines of
major international meetings such as the UN General Assembly.
EU and
Kazakhstan Cooperation Programmes and Projects
Through
manifold co-operation and assistance programmes the EU further promotes
stability and prosperity in the region, thus making Kazakhstan a reliable
partner for the EU with shared principles and goals. Since 2000, more
than 370 projects amounting to € 140 million have been funded by the EU to
support Kazakhstan directly [4]. The biggest share of these funds is allocated
to policy advice and technical assistance to the government based on European
experience, in sectors jointly identified as priorities.
Economic
relations
The EU
has progressively become Kazakhstan's first trading partner, with a 40% share
in Kazakhstan's total external trade. 48.7% of all Kazakh exports go to the EU,
while 27.4% of all imports originate from the EU. The CIS countries and China
are other main trading partners.
Technical
assistance is an important dimension of EU - Kazakhstan relationship in terms
of improvement of business climate, development of legal framework, development
of SMEs, etc [3]. Since 2009, several trade related projects
have been financed by the EU with an aim to support WTO accession in Kazakhstan
and develop trade policy. In 2010 the EU launched the Central Asia
Invest programme and supports the joint Eurasia Competitiveness Programme -
Central Asia Initiative.
The
EU-Kazakhstan bilateral trade has been growing strongly in the recent past.
Over the last decade, both exports to Kazakhstan and
imports from Kazakhstan saw significant increases in money terms. Exports to
Kazakhstan increased from € 2. lbn in 2008 to a
record high of € 6.0bn in 2010. However, both 2008 and 2009 saw a
slowdown, reaching € 5.4bn in 2009. The imports from Kazakhstan grew at a much
faster rate. They increased from € 2.0bn in 2008 to €
17.8bn in 2008, a 9-fold increase in as many years. The year 2010
experienced a decrease of 42%, reflecting the falling price of mineral oil and
the worldwide financial and economic crisis. It is worth mentioning that the
negative balance in trade with Kazakhstan has widened in recent years, as the
imports from Kazakhstan surpassed by far the exports. In 2010, the
EU had a deficit of € 5bn in trade with Kazakhstan (€-12. lbn in 2008).
In the
last few years Kazakhstan was able to attract a large amount of foreign direct
investments (FDI). In 2008 the total FDI inflows reached almost € llbn. In 2010, as a
consequence of the world economic crisis, they went back to € 9.0bn, more than
the level of 2009. The EU is the biggest foreign investor
in Kazakhstan, accounting for more than half of the country's total foreign
direct investment. FDI inflow from the EU Member States in 2008 amounted to
€6.5 bn. The two-thirds of this investment go to mining and extraction, and a
quarter to services in geological exploration. Besides oil and gas, the EU
investments are directed to a large range of sectors, including agriculture,
food-processing, engineering, construction, services, banking and transport.
Recently, a
Framework Agreement has been concluded between the Republic of Kazakhstan and
the European Investment Bank. This will lay the cornerstone for mutually
beneficial cooperation in future and help Kazakhstan to attract the long-term
and reasonably-priced credit resources for infrastructure projects.
References:
1.
Материалы VI Международной научно-практической конференции «Наука
без границ» (Экономические науки) - 2011, 7-15 декабря 2011 г.
2.
Мировая экономика
И.П.Гурова – 2изд. «Омега – Л», 2009г., 31-32 c.
3.
International magazine «Countries and economic world», NY-9/2011,
p.16-18
4.
Шемятенков В. Г.
Европейская интеграция. – М.: Международные отношения, 2009. – 400 с.
5.
http://economicconfidential.net/new/business
6.
http://www.economist.com/