Kazakhstan was afraid of “come in large numbers” from Russia because of “territorial claims”

“They scare themselves with made-up horror stories”

Today, on January 27, new entry rules for foreigners came into force in Kazakhstan. According to them, citizens of the Russian Federation can stay in the country for no more than 90 days within 180 days. This will greatly complicate the lives of those Russian citizens who consider Kazakhstan as a temporary refuge for the period of mobilization. Previously, they practiced the so-called. “visaran” – after 3 months, they “reset the counter”, briefly leaving for neighboring Uzbekistan or Kyrgyzstan. Now this number will not work.

What is behind the decision of the government of Kazakhstan? Does the tightening of migration rules for Russians mean a cooling in relations between our countries, or, on the contrary, in the current situation, is this a step towards Moscow? We asked these questions to Konstantin Zatulin, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration and Relations with Compatriots, Director of the Institute of CIS Countries.

Recall that in 2022, about 2.9 million citizens of the Russian Federation entered Kazakhstan. However, the new rules do not apply to them. They will affect only those who arrive in the republic after January 27, 2023. They will have to apply for a temporary residence permit or a visa in order to stay in the country. For citizens with professions in demand in the country, obtaining permanent residence permits will even be simplified. However, it is clear that most of the fugitives from the mobilization did not plan to gain a foothold in Kazakhstan for a long time. They expected to simply sit out the hard times there.

– I think that this is a controversial issue – whether this step of the government of Kazakhstan is towards Russia or away from it. Deputy Zatulin said. – But in the current situation, it is certainly beneficial to our country. Because it creates problems for those of our unscrupulous citizens who are hiding in Kazakhstan from fulfilling their civic duty. This is the main thing.

– And what were the motives of the government of Kazakhstan when making such a decision? It is unlikely that the task of pleasing Moscow was in the first place.

– One can argue about the reasons for this decision. Someone sees here almost a request from the Russian Federation, which in this way is trying to force those who left to return, or to complicate the process of leaving for those who only intend to do so. I don’t think the Russian leadership has had any influence here. After all, it abandoned the idea of ​​​​closing the borders in principle, although during the period of partial mobilization this would have been a logical and justified step. It seems to me that the real reason for making this decision is internal to Kazakhstan. Citizens of the Russian Federation who arrived in the country in such a short time in such a number create problems.

– Competition for jobs?

– The most important thing is that these visitors confuse the nationalist-minded part of Kazakh society, who see in all this an insidious intent to increase the number of Russians in Kazakhstan, in order to later lay claims to Northern or Eastern Kazakhstan. No matter how much we explain that the Russian Federation has no aggressive plans and territorial claims against Kazakhstan, we still will not convince the suspicious part of the Kazakh politicians of this. For them, what is happening in Ukraine, the recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia is an alarming symptom. They are well aware that modern Kazakhstan is the direct heir of the Kazakh SSR, and before its creation, it never existed as an independent state within its current borders. But in any reminder of this, they see the artillery preparation for the presentation of our territorial claims. Therefore, it seems to them that a large number of Russians who have arrived can create certain problems and “excite” the Russian population of Kazakhstan.

– Can Russia somehow calm these fears of a neighboring country?

– This requires an honest and open dialogue. We must look for what we have in common, find common ground. This will guarantee that friendly Russia will never make territorial claims. But in Kazakhstan there are many people who prefer not to follow this simple path, but to scare themselves with various fictitious horror stories. To reassure this part of the population, these decisions were made. We do not protest against this, since they are similar to the rules for citizens of Kazakhstan that were adopted in the Russian Federation.