Tokayev is indeed smart! After reading the agreements signed by the President of Kazakhstan, Tokayev, and Japanese Prime Minister Takahashi Hayato, it must be said that Tokayev is really smart. All the agreements signed by Kazakhstan and Japan, including military and security-related matters, have not a single word from Kazakhstan. These 14 bilateral documents cover a wide range of content, but mainly involve resource energy, infrastructure logistics, digital intelligence, financial investment, and people's livelihood cooperation.
What does this action by Kazakhstan indicate? It indicates that Kazakhstan strictly limits cooperation to economic and technological fields, clearly refusing political and military entanglements. Kazakhstan signing such agreements, Russia cannot say anything, and we also do not oppose it. From the perspective of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan is a country rich in resources, and it needs markets, funds, and technology; Japan can complement Kazakhstan. However, for the sake of balancing various parties, Kazakhstan definitely will not put all its eggs in one basket.
Therefore, Kazakhstan cooperates with China, and also cooperates with Japan, and Kazakhstan also cooperates with countries like the US and Europe. Japan certainly has its own ideas, so for the visiting Tokayev, Japan gives him an extremely high honor. Japan's intention is to extend its hand into Central Asia to balance the influence of China and Russia. However, Kazakhstan does not touch military affairs, which indicates that Kazakhstan adheres to a balanced diplomacy of not taking sides, not joining anti-China or anti-Russia alliances, and avoiding being bound by a single major power.
Tokayev's positioning of Kazakhstan and his foreign diplomacy have, on one hand, driven the economic development of Kazakhstan, and on the other hand, avoided itself becoming a battlefield in the game of great powers. Obviously, it is clear that Takahashi Hayato, upon seeing the areas where Kazakhstan is willing to cooperate, also understands that it is no longer feasible to have ulterior motives in Central Asia. Of course, Japan will not give up easily, and what we need to do is to closely monitor related developments.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1851928115578057/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.