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Kazakhstan and Eurasian Economic Integration: Quick Start, Mixed Results and Uncertain Future

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Russie.Eurasie.Reports
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Kazakhstan and Eurasian Economic Integration: Quick Start, Mixed Results and Uncertain Future
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Kazakhstan's economic integration with Russia and Belarus has been advancing at break-neck speed.

Corps analyses

In October 2007, these countries signed a treaty on the creation of the Customs Union (CU), in July 2010 the unified Customs Code went into effect, and in July 2011 customs controls were removed from the borders between member-states. In January 2012, Moscow, Astana and Minsk introduced the Single Economic Space (SES) based on “freedoms” of movement of goods, services, capital and labor to be implemented by 2015. While a union with Russia has been always an official priority, other trade integration alternatives have been pursued by the Kazakhstani government as well. The one that was in strong competition with the CU option was the prospect of joining the WTO and this way advancing Kazakhstan's integration with global markets and making the country's economy more competitive. The analysis of the possible motives (economic, political and geopolitical) explaining why Kazakhstani leadership privileged integration with Russia over joining the WTO shows that economic reasons emphasized in the official discourse did not play the main role. Political reasons (primarily, the concern with security) seem to have been more prominent.

 

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Kazakhstan and Eurasian Economic Integration: Quick Start, Mixed Results and Uncertain Future

Decoration
Author(s)
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Russie, Eurasie, Carte
Russia/Eurasia Center
Accroche centre

Founded in 2005 within Ifri, the Russia/Eurasia Center conducts research and organizes debates on Russia, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the South Caucasus. Its goal is to understand and anticipate the evolution of this complex and rapidly changing geographical area in order to enrich public discourse in France and Europe and to assist in strategic, political, and economic decision-making.

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dimitri_minic_journal_of_strategic_studies_volume_47_2024

How the Russian Army Changed its Concept of War, 1993-2022

Date de publication
23 May 2023
Accroche

The traditional and high-intensity war that has occurred in Ukraine since Russia decided to invade raises a key issue: did post-soviet Russian strategic thought really prepare Russia for waging this war?

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Russia's Nuclear Deterrence Put to the Test by the War in Ukraine

Date de publication
06 October 2025
Accroche

From the outset of its “special military operation” (SVO) against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Russia, which possesses one of the world’s largest nuclear arsenals, has adopted aggressive deterrence measures and a resolutely menacing rhetorical stance.

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Moldova's Crucial Parliamentary Election. What's at Stake?

Date de publication
22 September 2025
Accroche

On the occasion of Moldova’s National Day, August 27, 2025, Chișinău hosted a high-level European delegation composed of Emmanuel Macron, Friedrich Merz and Donald Tusk, who sought to reaffirm their support for the country’s sovereignty and pro-European course. This unprecedented and highly symbolic visit took place at a pivotal moment. Moldova is preparing for decisive parliamentary elections on September 28, whose stakes extend far beyond the national framework.

Florent PARMENTIER
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War as Social Elevator: The Socioeconomic Impact of Russian Military Keynesianism

Date de publication
19 June 2025
Accroche

In order to finance its war effort, the Russian state has spent substantial sums of money and implemented a form of “military Keynesianism” that is transforming society at both the socioeconomic and cultural levels. This has partially rebalanced the wide disparities in wealth, levels of consumption, and social prestige in Russian society by granting significant financial and symbolic advantages to peripheral Russia, which has long been overlooked by the central government. 

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Kazakhstan and Eurasian Economic Integration: Quick Start, Mixed Results and Uncertain Future

Kazakhstan and Eurasian Economic Integration: Quick Start, Mixed Results and Uncertain Future