Kazakhstan continues negotiations on the creation of a free trade zone with the UAE

In the period of June 20-22 this year, the second round of negotiations on the conclusion of a free trade agreement between the EAEU member States and the United Arab Emirates took place in Moscow (Russian Federation).

The negotiating delegation of Kazakhstan is represented by experts from the Ministry of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan. During the round, the parties, in addition to continuing to discuss the content of the chapters of the draft agreement (Trade in goods, Trade protection measures, Rules for Determining the Origin of Goods, Customs Cooperation, Electronic Commerce, etc.), initiated a discussion of the tariff part of the future agreement in order to determine the scope of tariff liberalization to ensure duty-free trade between the parties.

Bilateral trade between Kazakhstan and the UAE is actively developing, and the trade turnover by the end of 2022 amounted to 632.6 million US dollars, of which Kazakhstan's exports amount to 560 million US dollars, and imports from the UAE – 72.3 million US dollars. Mutual cancellation of import customs duties within the framework of the future agreement, in turn, contributes to an increase in trade flows and further growth in trade volumes with the UAE.

«The United Arab Emirates is an important trading partner both for the Republic of Kazakhstan and for the rest of the EAEU member states. We have a significant potential to increase mutual trade, which makes this negotiation process even more important. It is important that during the second round the parties switched to the tariff part of the negotiations, which, in essence, is the basis of the entire future agreement», - said Vice Minister of Trade and Integration Janelle Kushukova. She also stressed the high dynamics of the negotiation process with the UAE and the desire of the parties to reach mutually beneficial agreements.