Leading expert at KISS: Armenia and Kazakhstan are trying to make up for lost potential in political and economic cooperation

ArmInfo. Kazakhstan and Armenia are currently trying to make up for lost time in their relations and strengthen cooperation in both the political and economic spheres. Alisher Abdreshev, a leading expert in the Department of European and American Studies at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies (KISS), stated this in an interview with an ArmInfo correspondent on September 24 on the sidelines of the APRI Armenia 2026 forum.

According to the expert, interaction between the countries is growing every year. "Over the past two or three years, in my opinion, expert ties between Kazakhstan and Armenia have been strengthening. The turning point here was probably 2023, when the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict ended. Now, I believe, Armenia has additional opportunities to begin closer cooperation with foreign countries. Kazakhstan is no exception. We regularly receive invitations from our Armenian friends to participate in conferences. "In turn, we invite our Armenian colleagues to Kazakhstani venues," Abdreshev noted.

According to him, it is very important for Kazakhstan how Yerevan positions itself today and how it seeks to further pursue its foreign policy. However, the expert noted that there are areas that are currently receiving insufficient attention. He linked this to the fact that Armenia was effectively closed off from its borders for many years, lacking full access to external markets. "Now Kazakhstan and Armenia are trying to make up for lost time in relations and strengthen cooperation in both the political and economic spheres. But the most important area today is probably issues of transport corridors and logistics. Here, I believe our governments—the governments of Armenia and Kazakhstan—should intensify work on projects related to the Middle Corridor (the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route - ed.), as well as the Trump Route (TRIPP) project, which is currently being widely discussed in Armenia. Of course, we mustn't forget the humanitarian dimension. We are very pleased that cultural ties between the two countries are growing. This is natural, since Kazakhstan and Armenia share a common history. I think this interaction will continue," noted the leading expert from the Kazakh Institute of Strategic Studies. At the same time, the expert noted, current trade and economic cooperation do not yet meet the intentions and ambitions of Kazakhstan and Armenia. He recalled that trade between the countries amounts to approximately $70 million, which, according to him, does not correspond to their potential. "As I have already noted, this is due to the fact that Armenia was limited for many years in terms of logistics and border crossings. Kazakhstan was simply physically unable to supply goods to Armenia. Armenia also could not freely export its products due to closed borders. Therefore, I believe that the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict opens new opportunities for exporting goods. "And, by the way, I'd like to note that Kazakhstan has already supplied grain to Armenia via Azerbaijan," the expert noted.

Abdreshev also noted that it's difficult to predict how relations between the countries will develop in the future. He noted that the geopolitical situation today is highly unpredictable. "No one expected, for example, a conflict to break out in Iran—it was a surprise. Therefore, we don't know what other cataclysms the international community might face. It's difficult to make any predictions here. But the most important thing is that the leaders of the two countries have the political will to maintain relations and increase dialogue. Therefore, I think we're looking forward to positive dynamics rather than any stagnation in relations," the leading KISI expert concluded.