ASTANA – The Astana Times has selected articles from global media outlets covering Kazakhstan. This week’s foreign media digest features Kazakhstan’s AI ambitions, ties with Belgium, preparations for the Kurultai elections, and the Middle Corridor.
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How China is aiding Kazakh efforts to become hyper modern
The Diplomat published an article on July 21 about Kazakhstan’s efforts to accelerate its digital transformation and artificial intelligence ambitions through expanded strategic cooperation with China, highlighted by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s visit to Shanghai and the signing of more than $15 billion in technology and infrastructure agreements.
“President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s visit to Shanghai underscored Kazakhstan’s commitment to becoming a regional digital and AI hub through closer cooperation with China. During the visit, the two countries signed more than 70 agreements and memorandums worth over $15 billion, covering artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure, logistics, and data centers. Major outcomes included Huawei’s strategic partnership with Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development, Kazakhstan’s accession to the World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization, and plans for the 1 gigawatt (GW) Data Center Valley, which is expected to become Central Asia’s largest data center,” reads the article.
Kazakhstan and Belgium: Building a Partnership for the Future
In an article published in EU Reporter on July 20, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the Kingdom of Belgium Roman Vassilenko highlighted the strong and steadily expanding partnership between Kazakhstan and Belgium, emphasizing growing political, economic and people-to-people cooperation, as well as shared values and future opportunities.
“This year marks a particularly significant milestone in our bilateral relationship. In June, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev paid an official visit to Brussels, where he held productive meetings with the Belgian leadership and the heads of the European Union institutions. These discussions reaffirmed the excellent political dialogue between our countries and highlighted our shared commitment to strengthening economic cooperation, connectivity and sustainable development. The momentum generated by this high-level engagement will continue later this year with the historic State Visit of His Majesty King Philippe to Kazakhstan – the first State Visit by a Belgian monarch since the establishment of diplomatic relations between our countries,” Vassilenko writes.
Kazakhstan: Central Election Committee reviews the results of the nomination of candidates for the deputies of Kurultai
EU Reporter published an article on July 20 about the Central Election Commission’s preparations for Kazakhstan’s Aug. 23 Kurultai elections, including the nomination of candidates, measures to protect the voting rights of persons with disabilities, and the accreditation of international observers.
“In accordance with the agenda, the following matters were considered: the results of the nomination of candidates for deputies of the Kurultai of Kazakhstan in the election scheduled for Aug. 23; certain matters concerning the protection of the electoral rights of citizens with disabilities; and the accreditation of observers from foreign states and international organizations. These agenda items reflected the Commission’s focus on ensuring an inclusive, transparent and internationally monitored electoral process,” reads the article.
Kazakhstan seeks regional AI leadership as economic partnership with China enters new phase
EU Reporter released an article on July 18 about President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s visit to Shanghai, where he advanced Kazakhstan’s ambitions to become Central Asia’s leading digital and technology hub by strengthening AI cooperation with China, attracting investment, and promoting a new roadmap for bilateral economic partnership through 2030.
“Kazakhstan’s strategy appears designed to avoid dependence on any single technology ecosystem. By combining Chinese investment with international organisations, UN-linked initiatives and calls for universal AI governance, the country is presenting itself as a regional connector rather than simply an extension of China’s digital economy. Whether it can deliver on that ambition will depend on implementation: building the necessary infrastructure, educating a skilled workforce, ensuring transparent regulation and converting investment announcements into sustainable industrial projects,” reads the article.
A unified platform for the Middle Corridor
The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) published an article on July 22 about how the European Union can strengthen the Middle Corridor by making the Three Seas Initiative its main partner for coordinating infrastructure projects on the corridor’s European end, thereby improving connectivity, reducing fragmented investment, and increasing Europe’s resilience to future supply chain disruptions.
“The 3SI is not an EU body, and its membership only partially overlaps with that of the EU. Brussels cannot, therefore, simply route its connectivity policy through it. But it does not need to: the 3SI already assembles most of the member states where the Middle Corridor reaches Europe, and it maintains the kind of ranked project pipeline the EU’s own efforts lack. The EU could treat that pipeline as a shared reference point for the corridor’s European end, aligning its own funding through the Commission, the European Investment Bank, and existing instruments with the projects the 3SI has prioritized, rather than spreading it across parallel programs. On that basis, the 3SI should become the EU’s main partner for the European end of the Middle Corridor,” reads the article.
