Relationship dossier
Kazakhstan
United States
Relationship assessment
A sustained partnership on nuclear security and regional cooperation, tempered by human-rights concerns and sanctions scrutiny.
Kazakhstan toward United States
+45Kazakhstan has cooperated with the United States on nuclear nonproliferation, including the dismantlement and security of nuclear weapons and materials inherited after the Soviet Union's dissolution. It also participates in bilateral strategic and security dialogue. The scope of cooperation is tempered by U.S. concerns about human rights and the risk that trade routes could facilitate sanctions circumvention.
United States toward Kazakhstan
+45The United States supported Kazakhstan's nuclear disarmament and security efforts through cooperative threat-reduction programs and has maintained strategic dialogue and security cooperation with the Kazakh government. U.S. policy has also supported Kazakhstan's sovereignty, while raising concerns about human rights and possible sanctions circumvention.
Overall relationship
+45The relationship rests on durable cooperation in nuclear nonproliferation and security, alongside strategic dialogue and economic engagement. These shared interests sustain a substantive partnership, while U.S. concerns about human rights and sanctions enforcement prevent it from being an unqualified alignment.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Kazakhstan and the United States have built a sustained partnership focused on nuclear nonproliferation, security, and economic ties. Kazakhstan cooperated with U.S. efforts to dismantle and secure inherited nuclear weapons and materials, while the two governments maintain strategic dialogue and security cooperation. U.S. policy has supported Kazakhstan’s sovereignty and nuclear-security efforts. Human-rights concerns and scrutiny of possible sanctions circumvention complicate the relationship.
Areas of tension
- U.S. concerns about human rights and political freedoms in Kazakhstan.
- U.S. scrutiny of possible sanctions circumvention through Kazakhstan.
Key developments
Kazakhstan and the United States cooperated on dismantling and securing nuclear weapons and materials inherited after the Soviet Union's dissolution.
The two governments established a Strategic Partnership Dialogue to coordinate on bilateral and regional issues.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of current security and economic cooperation are unclear.
- The extent of Kazakhstan's enforcement against sanctions circumvention is uncertain.