During the war in Ukraine, Kazakhstan walked a delicate line.
The ex-Soviet Central Asian nation has stopped outright criticizing Russia, its traditional ally, and has regularly called for peace.
It has largely chosen to abstain rather than side with Russia in United Nations votes on the war.
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has maintained contact not only with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but also with his Ukrainian and Western counterparts. He has provided shelter for Russians fleeing mobilization and refused to recognize occupied Ukrainian land as Russian territory.
And in several Ukrainian cities, “invincibility” yurts erected by Kazakhs are powerful symbols of humanitarian aid. The tents offer free Kazakh food, tea and hubs to charge electronic devices.
As the war continues, officials say they are open to a mediating role and will host the Astana International Forum in June, when global security will be on the agenda.
But at the same time, Russia is still Kazakhstan’s largest trading partner and the two countries share one of the world’s longest borders. It has also been accused of helping Russia evade punitive Western sanctions, accusations that have led to new measures aimed at transparency.
Al Jazeera speaks with the Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, Roman Vassilenko, about Russia, Ukraine and the possibilities for peace.
Al Jazeera: The Russian war in Ukraine has dragged on for more than a year. Thousands of people have been killed. This week, Save the Children announced another grim milestone: the death toll of the children has passed 500. How would you characterize the Russian invasion at this stage?
Roman Vassilenko: We are very concerned about this war. It is a conflict between two countries that are close to Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan maintains relations with both Russia and Ukraine, and shares the world’s longest contiguous border with Russia at 7,500 km (4,660 mi). But Kazakhstan also maintains very close economic ties with Ukraine.
And there are millions of personal ties, because in Kazakhstan, out of 20 million people, we have 3.5 million ethnic Russians who are citizens of Kazakhstan. And there are 250,000 Ukrainians in Kazakhstan, also citizens of Kazakhstan.
There are up to one million ethnic Kazakhs who are Russian citizens.
For us it is not a distant war. It’s very, very tragic and disturbing. And that is why Kazakhstan has made itself available as a mediator from the very first days.
We stand for the territorial integrity of all states, including Ukraine, based on the UN Charter. We didn’t recognize it [September 2022 Russia-led annexation] agrees [four] southeastern regions of Ukraine, nor have we recognized their addition to the Russian Federation. We recognize them as Ukrainian.
Al Jazeera: You have a deep history, long borders, and strong economic and cultural ties to Russia. Can you exert more influence to stop the war?
Vassilenko: We can only use diplomatic methods and we can only use persuasion. As a neighbor of Russia and as a country that maintains ties with Russia, we naturally reiterate this point of view and hope that this point of view will be heard.
Al Jazeera: Do you think the invasion was justified?
Vassilenko: We have not publicly stated our position on the justification of the war. What we have stated publicly is that we want this conflict to end as soon as possible.
Kazakhstan has provided humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Our people have provided humanitarian aid to the Ukrainian people. Invincibility yurts have been set up by Kazakhstan in several cities in Ukraine.
That says something about society’s attitude to this conflict. We want to do our part. We want it to stop as soon as possible. It’s very, very, very painful to watch.
Al Jazeera: Does Kazakhstan’s diversity pose domestic challenges, in terms of how the war is viewed?
Vassilenko: We have over 120 ethnic groups. Many people in Kazakhstan have realized what a precious peace and harmony we have here in our society – and how much more effort we need to make to preserve it and avoid potential conflicts based on ethnicity or religion.
Al Jazeera: But some Kazakh nationals reportedly left to fight for Ukraine…
Vassilenko: I’ve heard some specific stories… What I would say is that under our law fighting in foreign wars is illegal.
These people, if they decide to do so, will be prosecuted criminally and the punishment is quite severe – so we don’t encourage mercenaries.
Al Jazeera: Since the start of the war, observers have said that Kazakhstan is trying to move out of Russia’s sphere of influence, perhaps fearing it could one day step into Ukraine’s position…
Vassilenko: Kazakhstan is located in the heart of Eurasia. And because it is the largest landlocked country, [it] has pursued what has come to be known as a multi-vector foreign policy, meaning we are building normal good relations with Russia, with China, with the West.
These are relationships based on mutual respect.
Over the past year we may have realized so clearly that this is the perfect foreign policy for Kazakhstan, because while it is the ninth largest country in the world, it also borders two of the world’s largest nations by size, Russia, and by population, china.
Kazakhstan wants to build normal relations with all its neighbors.
It is in our DNA to look for a peaceful resolution of conflicts. We dismantled the fourth largest nuclear arsenal in the world, which we inherited when the Soviet Union collapsed. We understand that diplomacy is the best way to protect our national interests.
We will remain true to this principle and we will continue to vigorously present it to Russia, China and the West. Kazakhstan is not in favor of great games again in the 21st century.
Al Jazeera: However, there are concerns that Kazakhstan is helping Russia evade Western sanctions. For example, Kazakh exports to Russia have increased in the past year…
Vassilenko: Kazakhstan, together with Russia, is part of the Eurasian Economic Union. There are no customs controls at the border between Kazakhstan and Russia – and there are 51 border crossings between our countries. So you can imagine the intensity of exchange on a daily basis.
But from day one of the conflict, we have said that while we will not impose sanctions on Russia, we will not allow our territory to be used to circumvent sanctions.
[As well as from Europe, we receive] more expensive products, including washing machines and refrigerators and iPhones, also from countries that do not impose sanctions on Russia, such as China, India, Vietnam. And it is precisely those products that find their way to Russia, because entrepreneurs in Kazakhstan do not see any legal problems with this.
However, we have decided to introduce an electronic control system for goods exported in the Eurasian Economic Union from April 1, so that we can track these goods.
Al Jazeera: What do you hope to achieve with the data by monitoring the export?
Vassilenko: We have very clear guidelines for the companies as to what is possible to export to Russia and what is not advisable to export to Russia given the circumstances.
Al Jazeera: You have spoken about Kazakhstan’s ties with Western countries. Do you think the West has misunderstandings about the Central Asian region?
Vassilenko: No, I think the West understands Central Asia very well, and I think they understand the situation in Russia and Ukraine very well.
Our message is: continue to understand the precarious and delicate nature of our position, because we are indeed in this neighbourhood.
The region is now surrounded by the most sanctioned countries in the world – unfortunately for us and for our trade.
We don’t have it easy here. We also need support for economic development. We are committed to building democracy. Democracy does not happen overnight. We need to be patient. We are moving towards the very high ideals of democracy – participatory democracy. We need support for this.
Al Jazeera: What lessons will the world be left with after the end of the war between Russia and Ukraine?
Vassilenko: We will have to, if not reinvent, somehow strengthen the UN and strengthen the international system.
[This war] makes it clear that the world has no plan B. This is our planet. We really need to work on the most pressing issues facing our world. It is not the time to settle differences through war.
Editor’s Note: This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.