THE U.S. KAZAKHSTAN POLICY IN THE CONTEXT OF NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT PROBLEMS AND THE
ESTABLISHMENT OF STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP (THE 1990S) 

Kasovich Yuliya Olegovna, Postgraduate student, Saratov State University named after N. G. Chernyshevsky
(83 Astrakhanskaya street, Saratov, Russia), Julia.adaeva@mail.ru

327(100-87)

Background. One of the newly independent states that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union is the Republic of Kazakhstan. The Western countries and especially the United States have taken advantage of the changed political conditions. At the beginning of the 1990s Kazakhstan possessed sufficiently large natural energy resources, there were also nuclear weapons on its territory. Kazakhstan was interested in developing its economy. At the same time, the U.S. viewed the region as a means to satisfy not only their economic needs, but also military and political ambitions. Therefore, the U.S. main objective was solving the problem of eliminating
the Soviet nuclear legacy in Kazakhstan. All this caused the U.S. to establish relations with Kazakhstan. The present paper examines the peculiarities of the development of relations between the United States and the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Materials and methods. The implementation of the research objective was achieved through analyzing the main stages in the development of the U.S. and Kazakhstan relations. The paper methodology was defined by the peculiarities of the negotiation process between the United States and Kazakhstan connected with security and arms control problems. The most important results of the negotiations were the working visits of the leaders of the two countries, the implementation of the Nunn–Lugar program, Kazakhstan’s accession to the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the operation “Sapphire”.
Results. The formation and development of relations between the U.S. and the Republic of Kazakhstan, which gained independence  after the collapse of the USSR, have been investigated. The stages of establishing mutually beneficial relations between the two countries in the 1990s have been studied. It is shown that framing a strategic partnership is possible only through frank negotiations.
Conclusions. One can speak of two stages in the relations between the U.S. and Kazakhstan in the 1990s. The first stage (1991–1995) saw Kazakhstan joining the system of relations and international security due to the solution of “the nuclear issue”. The second stage is characterized by a fundamental change in the U.S. policy towards Kazakhstan, expressed in increasing economic aid to the latter.

policy, USA, Kazakhstan, independence, nuclear weapons, relations, disarmament negotiations.

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