EU and Kazakhstan strengthen strategic partnership during leaders’ meeting in Brussels

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, António Costa, welcomed today Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kazakhstan, in Brussels.

During the visit, the EU and Kazakhstan signed a joint press statement, as well as several agreements that will deliver for citizens and business on both sides. They include agreements on connectivity, in particular aviation, and critical raw materials. Likewise, both sides committed to following through investments under the Global Gateway strategy.

President von der Leyen said: “Kazakhstan is a global gateway, and so is Central Asia. The visit of President Tokayev today signals the growing partnership between the European Union and Kazakhstan. We are ready to turn that gateway into a pathway for jobs, business opportunities and common prosperity. Following the success of our first-ever EU-Central Asia Summit last year, our Global Gateway strategy will continue bringing our regions closer together.”

Better connections and more opportunities for European air carriers

A Horizontal Aviation Agreement signed today will improve air connectivity between the EU and Kazakhstan and bring new business opportunities to European airlines.

Under the agreement, all EU airlines can fly between Kazakhstan and any of the 17 Member States that have an air services agreement with Kazakhstan. This in contrast to the current situation in which airlines owned and controlled by the Member States in question, or by their nationals, are generally the ones that can benefit.

The agreement is a major achievement that has been in negotiation for over two decades.

Direct trade links through the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor

Under Global Gateway, a framework loan agreement for up to €150 million was signed between the European Investment Bank and the Kazakh National Road Company.

With a guarantee backed by the EU, this operation will finance the improvement of Kazakh roads along the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor, a Global Gateway flagship that will create new, direct East-West trade routes and reduce reliance on neighbouring countries.

This follows the operation approved by the EU last October to support the modernisation of the Aktau Port.

An internationally accredited chemical-analytical laboratory for critical raw materials

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Kazakh Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding to support the feasibility study to build an internationally accredited chemical-analytical laboratory for critical raw materials in Astana.

Chemical-analytical laboratories test substances such as critical raw materials for safety and quality.

The EU is committed to deepening cooperation in this strategic sector and previously supported the pre-feasibility study for the laboratory.

This operation is also carried out under the Global Gateway banner.

Visa Facilitation Agreement and Readmission Agreement

Negotiations for the two agreements between the European Commission and Kazakhstan have concluded successfully, opening the internal procedures for their adoption.

Once adopted, the Visa Facilitation Agreement will make the process for Kazakh citizens to request a short-stay EU visa simpler, strengthening people-to-people contacts. Meanwhile the Readmission Agreement will facilitate the enforcement of the EU’s migration rules only days after the full entry into application of the Pact on Migration and Asylum.

The conclusion of the negotiations built on the significant progress and good cooperation with Kazakhstan to prevent the circumvention of EU sanctions.

EU-Kazakhstan Business Roundtable

In the margins of the leaders’ meeting, Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security and Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency, Maroš Šefčovič, and President Tokayev chaired a business roundtable with several European companies which are ready to do business in Kazakhstan.

In this context, Kazakhstan signed an agreement to buy up to 50 Airbus airplanes. This is a clear example of how European companies, big and small, are benefitting from the EU’s partnerships around the world.

Background

The EU-Kazakhstan relation is built on the Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (EPCA), which has been in force since 2020.

The European Union is Kazakhstan’s first trade and investment partner, accounting for one third of Kazakhstan’s external trade.

Today’s meeting also builds on the first-ever EU-Central Asia Summit, held in 2025 in Samarkand, at which the European Union and the five Central Asian republics established a strategic partnership and the EU announced a Global Gateway investment package for €12 billion in the areas of transport, digital connectivity, water, energy, climate, and critical raw materials.