BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 12. The state visit
of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium to Kazakhstan on
October 11–14 takes place against the backdrop of the European
Union’s efforts to diversify its sources of strategic raw materials
and Kazakhstan’s interest in developing higher value-added
industries.
This is the first state visit by a Belgian monarch to Kazakhstan
and follows Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s official visit
to Brussels on June 22–23, 2026, less than four months earlier. The
program also includes the fourth meeting of the Kazakhstan-Belgium
Business Council, established in 2023.
Economic relations between the two countries have strengthened
considerably in recent years. According to the Belgian Foreign
Ministry, bilateral trade increased from 220 million euros in 2016
to 765 million euros in 2025. Belgium ranks sixth among the
countries investing directly in Kazakhstan, with more than 100
Belgian companies operating in the Kazakh market across the
chemical, biopharmaceutical and energy sectors.
Kazakhstan possesses reserves of raw materials essential to
European industry, while Belgium has expertise in their processing
and recycling. This complementarity is particularly relevant to the
European Union’s interest in establishing reliable partnerships
across the entire production chain, from extraction to processing.
For its part, Kazakhstan seeks to attract investors prepared to
establish processing facilities within the country rather than
focus exclusively on the purchase of raw materials.
The economic capabilities of the two countries are largely
complementary. Kazakhstan offers a resource base and locations for
industrial facilities, while Belgium contributes processing and
recycling technologies, as well as developed port infrastructure
that provides access to the European market. One potential model of
cooperation would involve the initial processing of raw materials
in Kazakhstan, followed by further processing in Europe. The
specific arrangement would depend on investment terms and future
contractual agreements.
Logistics is also among the promising areas of cooperation. In
September, Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Belgium Roman Vassilenko and
Wim Dillen, Director of International Development at the Port of
Antwerp-Bruges, discussed developing direct links with the ports of
Aktau and Kuryk. The sides considered the digitalization of port
infrastructure, the introduction of smart solutions, specialist
training and the possibility of using Antwerp as a European
logistics hub for Kazakh metals, critical raw materials,
petrochemical products and agricultural goods. The possibility of
concluding a framework agreement between the ports is also under
discussion.
Interest in this area is linked to the EU’s efforts to diversify
transport routes and find alternative logistics corridors across
Eurasia. Cooperation between Kazakhstan and Belgium could cover not
only cargo handling but also the exchange of expertise in port
management, digitalization and workforce training. For Astana, the
additional economic benefits will depend on the development of
warehouses, distribution centers and facilities for processing
goods along the transport route.
The strengthening of ties with Belgium comes amid the expansion
of Kazakhstan’s cooperation with the European Union. The main areas
of engagement include critical raw materials, energy, transport and
digital technologies. A separate focus is the development of the
Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, which connects Central
Asia with European markets via the Caspian Sea and the South
Caucasus.
At the same time, Astana continues to develop economic relations
with China, Russia, the United States and other partners. This
approach is consistent with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s
multi-vector foreign policy, which involves cooperation with
different centers of the global economy without excessive
dependence on any single direction.
The outcome of cooperation with Belgium will depend on whether
the two sides can move from agreements to concrete projects. The
establishment of processing facilities, the development of port
links, and the opening of new industrial enterprises in Kazakhstan
will make it possible to assess the partnership’s practical
benefits. For Astana, it is essential that expanding economic ties
with Europe not only boosts exports but also contributes to the
development of domestic production.
