French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan on Wednesday, November 1st and Thursday, November 2nd, two heavyweights in post-Soviet Central Asia that Paris does not want to leave only to Russian, Chinese and Turkish influences. This visit, “to which the President attaches great importance,” according to the Elysée, aims to deepen the strategic partnership that France entered into in 2008 with Kazakhstan, the regional economic engine rich in oil, coal, uranium and rare metals is.
The most developed Central Asian republic has traditionally been within Russia’s sphere of influence and is seeking to diversify its relations in a context complicated by the war in Ukraine, China’s ambitions and its security dependence on Russia. But the European Union (EU) does not want to be pushed out. With its own “Global Gateway” strategy, the company wants to invest massively in interconnectivity and infrastructure projects. France is obviously in line with the initiative of its European partners.
Courted by Beijing and dependent on Moscow, Kazakhstan is using its strategic location between Europe and Asia to diversify its partnerships. The former Soviet republic is five times the size of France and has only 19 million inhabitants. It has always maintained relations with its Russian neighbor, on whom it largely depends for oil exports. However, in recent years, trade relations with the EU, which buys Kazakh oil and uranium, have strengthened significantly. Brussels is now the leading investor in the region, ahead of Moscow and Beijing.
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As Kazakhstan’s third trading partner, Paris is not lagging behind. As evidence of the interest of French investors in this key zone, around fifteen business leaders, including the CEOs of EDF, Suez and Orano (formerly Areva), will accompany the head of state to Astana, the country’s futuristic capital, and then to Samarkand, the mythical city of the ancient Silk Roads, in the south of Uzbekistan.
The topic of critical metals and rare earths
The mining sector is at the center of everyone’s attention, as shown by the presence of the Office of Geological and Mining Research in the economic delegation. At stake is the crucial question of the supply of critical metals and rare earths underground in these two countries. Orano, which has been present in Kazakhstan since 1996 and specializes in the exploitation of uranium mines, is now trying to establish itself in Uzbekistan, especially since Niger, which was rocked by a coup in July, is no longer a reliable supplier.
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