AIF 2025: Kazakhstan Doesn’t Just Host — It Shows Up

ASTANA — Over the course of my not-so-long but eventful career in media as a TV producer, PR consultant, and now reporter for The Astana Times, I’ve covered more major events than I can count. The Astana International Forum (AIF) is one of them. I’ll be candid: at some point, these grand gatherings began to feel like polished rituals – impressive, yes, but repetitive. Kazakhstan has long maintained its image as an open, peace-loving, multi-vector country, ready to bridge divides and host dialogue. To skeptics, that message often sounded like diplomatic wallpaper, noble but ineffective.

Collage is created by The Astana Times.

But this year felt different.

Listening to the experts, watching the debates unfold, and hearing President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s keynote, I realized that the country’s long-held posture is no longer just rhetoric; it is a strategic necessity that has paid off. 

The world is burning, but Kazakhstan leans into cooperation

Aida Haidar. Photo credit: The Astana Times/ Fatima Kemelova

In his address, President Tokayev didn’t sugarcoat the moment. He noted that 52 states are currently experiencing armed conflict, with the global economic impact of violence reaching $19 trillion, 13.5% of global GDP.

“In this time of profound uncertainty, what matters is how we respond. That choice lies with us—in the decisions we make and the values we uphold,” Tokayev said.

Kazakhstan’s answer is clear: cooperative engagement over confrontation. The forum itself, bringing together diverse political, business, and civil society actors, proves that the country doesn’t just talk about multilateralism; it facilitates it.

The Middle Corridor: Kazakhstan’s bet on a new trade order

Experts I spoke with were quick to point out that Kazakhstan is not just surviving global turbulence, it’s trying to benefit from it. One of the country’s boldest plays is the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, widely known as the Middle Corridor. As supply chains shift and globalization becomes more fragmented, Kazakhstan aims to become a key node in a new, multipolar trade order.

Vice President of the European Investment Bank Kyriacos Kakouris said it plainly: countries along the Middle Corridor have a rare opportunity to strengthen their role in global logistics and resilience.

Darren Spinck, associate fellow at the UK-based Henry Jackson Society, went further. He noted that the collapse of unipolarity, accelerated by the Trump administration’s inward pivot, has created an opportunity for countries like Kazakhstan to emerge as brokers of geopolitical and economic stability.

“Central Asia is no longer on the periphery,” he said. “It is becoming central to shaping what comes next.”

Beyond oil: Kazakhstan’s bet on AI and innovation

That strategic vision goes beyond physical trade routes. At both AIF and this year’s National Kurultai, President Tokayev made it clear: Kazakhstan is betting on digital transformation and AI as drivers of its next economic chapter.

“AI is driving a fundamental transformation across all sectors. Against this backdrop, a new phenomenon has emerged—the innovation economy, where unconventional thinking, creative ingenuity, and social skills take center stage,” Tokayev said in March this year. 

Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding and one of the country’s most prominent entrepreneurs, echoed this message in a conversation with my colleague Aibarshyn Akhmetkali.

“Kazakhstan’s next major export is services. Let’s admit that the economy will be almost completely composed of services in a few decades,” Turlov said.

He added that with its educated youth, infrastructure, and ambitious leadership, Kazakhstan may well position itself as a digital services hub, shifting away from the dependency on oil and gas.

But let’s be clear: oil isn’t going anywhere, yet. At one of the sessions on AIF’s sidelines, Vice Minister of Energy Alibek Zhamauov admitted as much. The sector still accounts for nearly a quarter of GDP, and in 2024 alone, Kazakhstan commissioned 16 new projects worth over four billion tenge (US$7.9 million). Kazakhstan produced 47.7 million tons of oil this year and aims to more than double that. To support this, it continues to diversify export routes through the CPC pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, the Middle Corridor, and the Atyrau-Samara pipeline via Druzhba to Germany.

It’s a classic Tokayev move: be pragmatic, stay open, and hedge your bets.

Not just hosting – leading with purpose

Experts often cite Kazakhstan’s geographical limitations: it has no access to the sea, harsh winters, and is surrounded by powerful neighbors. But this year, I witnessed something different: a country pushing back against that narrative and actively redefining its place in the world.

Instead of accepting constraints, Kazakhstan is reinventing itself: economically, diplomatically, and technologically. Events like AIF aren’t just about prestige anymore. They’re about shaping conversations, influencing outcomes, and showing the world that Kazakhstan is here, ready to lead with openness and purpose.

As a journalist who’s seen these events up close, I know better than to expect revolutions from every panel or policy pitch. But sometimes, the shift is subtle. You feel it in the energy of the discussions, the boldness of the speeches, and the quality of the ideas exchanged.

Kazakhstan showed up this year not just to host a forum, but to make a point: we are here, we are evolving, and we believe in the value of engagement, even when it’s difficult. Will it change the world overnight? Probably not. But as any journalist knows, half of success is just showing up.

Kazakhstan does. And this year, I saw it in a new light.


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