COMPETITIVENESS OF AGRICULTURAL TRADE BETWEEN KAZAKHSTAN AND CHINA

Relations between China and Kazakhstan have a long history (Di Cosmo, 1994). The Great Silk Road played a key role in the development of cooperation between countries (Ekinci, 2014). And now, thanks to the initiatives of the First President of Kazakhstan and the leaders of China, the world is experiencing the revival of the Silk Road in its new and modern form (Junxian and Yan, 2016). This became a good basis for raising bilateral Kazakh-Chinese relations to the level of an integrated strategic partnership (Kembayev, 2018). Mutually beneficial trade is fundamental to peace, equality, respect for sovereignty and the inviolability of borders (Jackson, 2006). Kazakhstan and China have over a couple decades of tremendous bilateral relations in terms of trade and economic cooperation (Rousseau, 2013). Currently, the legal framework of relations between Kazakhstan and China contains over 250 intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements in different fields (Huaxia, 2019). With regard to bilateral economic cooperation between these countries, it is now defined by positive trends covering transit and transport systems, trade, agriculture, finance and energy, engineering and other important sectors (Azizian and Bainazarova, 2012). The countries are undertaking a range of major economic ventures, building Europe-Asia transport links (Contessi, 2018). In this regard, the combination of Kazakhstan’s new economic policy “Nurly Zhol” and China’s “The Silk Road Economic Belt” initiative is important (Kukeyeva and Dyussebayev, 2019). All of the above is evidence of the desire of both countries for long-term cooperation and mutual respect. Kazakhstan and China have promising plans to strengthen cooperation and interaction in the field of agriculture, adhering to the principle of mutual benefit, using new development potential, expanding the space for cooperation, promoting the Kazakh-Chinese relations of comprehensive strategic partnership to a higher and deeper level of development (Yang, 2018). Agriculture is not only the oldest and most dependent sector of the economy on natural conditions but also a way of life for a significant part of the world’s population. Nevertheless, trade in agricultural products and their products are a vital component of the economy, as it provides food to the population of the country (FAO, 2017). In addition, it also provides job security, social stability, new territory development and environmental safety (FAO, 2014). In this context, it seems appropriate to study the development of trade relations between Kazakhstan and China, as well as to determine the level of competitiveness and complementarity of the agricultural sector. The almost complete absence of studies aimed at assessing and comparing the competitive advantages of the potential of Kazakhstan and China in bilateral trade determines the relevance and novelty of the proposed study. Therefore, we assume that this study will be a valuable addition to the literature on agricultural trade between Kazakhstan and China.