Kazakhstan’s Afghan trade grows, but Moscow talks end without a joint statement

Kazakhstan’s trade with Afghanistan reached $581.1 million in January–July 2026, 2.4 times the comparable period last year, its foreign ministry said on 6 October. The figure followed the eighth Moscow-format consultations on Afghanistan, attended by presidential special representative Yerkin Tukumov.

Trade amid political disagreement

Participants discussed security, counterterrorism, drug trafficking, transport corridors and business projects. They could not agree a joint closing statement. Kazakhstan’s ministry explicitly attributed that to continuing differences between the Afghan and Pakistani sides. Its account does not set out those differences, so assigning specific demands to either side would go beyond the evidence.

What the trade figure does and does not say

Higher turnover shows more exchange, but not which products drove the rise or how resilient the routes are. To measure Kazakhstan’s gains, readers need the export and import breakdown, delivery times, payment arrangements and business conditions. The ministry also expressed interest in production cooperation and infrastructure, but named no completed agreements for particular projects.

The meeting leaves two simultaneous conclusions: a growing practical economic relationship, and no political consensus yet on a common document.

Primary source: https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/mfa/press/news/details/1305597?lang=ru.