France's Le Figaro: Kazakhstan at the Crossroads of the New Silk Road

The fourth installment published by France's Le Figaro on Thursday introduces Kazakhstan, located at the crossroads of the New Silk Road.

The article points out that Kazakhstan is an influential power center in Central Asia, with close economic cooperation with China, which is particularly due to its construction of one of the world's largest border logistics zones in Khorgos.

The article begins by sketching the astonishing differences at the China-Kazakhstan border. On the Chinese side, the city of Khorgos officially claims to have 1 million residents, skyscrapers and wide streets, reflecting the vitality and ambition of the Chinese dragon. The border area is home to 25 million residents. On the Kazakh side, Nurkent is a newly built town of low-rise houses with fewer than 5,000 residents (only 140,000 people in the entire region), mainly employees of the cross-border commercial and industrial zone. Fifteen years ago, there was nothing here except grasslands and dunes.

Colorful containers are stacked like toys, moved by huge rolling cranes. They contain industrial goods and products produced by "the world's factory." In addition to cars and containers, millions of Chinese people cross the Chinese border through the Khorgos railway station and road hub every year, especially after the visa-free policy was implemented in November 2023.

Kazakhstan is the largest country in Central Asia, five times the size of France, with over 20 million people, sharing a 1,500 km border with China. Most commercial transport passes through the Khorgos land port, one of the world's major logistics hubs. The term "land port" is rarely so fitting: this port is located in one of the farthest regions from the ocean on Earth!

In 2013, China rang the bell for development in its speech launching the "Belt and Road" initiative. The launch site of this initiative was the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana, and the country was designated by Chinese leaders as a key part of its grand blueprint. In June, China once again came to Astana to attend the China-Central Asia Summit. Beijing is strengthening its influence over this initiative. Core idea: ensuring the exchange of goods between East and West, China and Europe, as ancient as the caravans that have traversed these routes for centuries. From Beijing's perspective, this ancient idea remains relevant today.

Seeking Alternative Routes

Due to the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as tensions with the United States, the development of this vast continental corridor has become more urgent.

A reliable source told Le Figaro reporters that due to concerns about the U.S. blockading the Malacca Strait, which is vital to its trade, and the Suez Canal, which blocks 20% of global oil transportation. According to Dossym Satpaev, a Kazakhstani political scientist, in this context, China is seeking alternative routes, trying to expand routes to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, but currently 80% of the transport volume goes through Kazakhstan.

Ruslan Izmov, a Sinologist based in Almaty, Kazakhstan's economic capital, said: "Through land transport via Kazakhstan, China can never transport the same amount of energy resources as it does by sea," "but if there is a conflict at sea, at least land transport can provide enough resources for China's economy to continue operating." So far, 90% of energy transportation uses the Eurasian Corridor (between Kazakhstan and Russia) and the Trans-Siberian Railway Corridor, which pass through Belarus and even the Baltic Sea to reach Europe. In the context of the Ukraine conflict, Russia, under Western sanctions, sees interest in such transport through transit taxes and parallel imports.

Since 2016, another route has been under development: through the Caspian Sea, Baku, then reaching the Georgian ports of Batumi and Poti in the Black Sea, or through Turkish railways. This route is particularly limited by the limited capacity of the Caspian fleet.

Kazakhstan and the "Belt and Road" Initiative

Kazakhstan also provides uranium needed for nuclear power plants in China. According to the Financial Times, Kazakhstan is the biggest beneficiary of China's investment among all participating countries of the "Belt and Road" initiative (investments reached 23 billion USD in the first half of 2025). Beijing is strengthening its influence in various fields, a historian who did not want to be named explained: "China's soft power is very strong," with 18 centers dedicated to studying Central Asia. Hundreds of Kazakhstani experts are regularly invited.

An observer from Kazakhstan's political capital, Astana, pointed out that unlike his predecessor Nursultan Nazarbayev, who was pro-Russian, his successor Tokayev is pro-Chinese. He studied in China, served as a diplomat, and speaks Chinese, and he is even "the only president in the world who can communicate with Chinese leaders without an interpreter."

Certainly, Kazakhstan knows it cannot do without Russia, especially in terms of security. In the large-scale public uprising in January 2022, Moscow helped it out of the crisis.

At the same time, Russia controls the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) oil pipeline, through which Kazakhstan, the ninth largest oil producer in the world, exports 80% of its oil. When Russia is building Kazakhstan's first nuclear power plant in Urkens on the shores of Lake Balkhash, China has already planned to build the second nuclear power plant in Semipalatinsk-Kurchatov.

The Khorgos land port is adjacent to an economic special zone, where about thirty companies are established, as well as a large duty-free area that resembles a real city. The duty-free area includes shopping centers, hotels, restaurants, office buildings, and Chinese-style parks with water features. These areas cover approximately 180,000 hectares, spanning both China and Kazakhstan. Enterprises investing in these areas enjoy tax benefits.

The journalist finally pointed out that there is a line drawn on the border: the most attractive thing is to have one foot in China and the other in Kazakhstan, take a photo like that.

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1839812000843780/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.