Kazakhstan entered into the Customs Union with Russia and Belarus on July 1, 2011, and this decision played a crucial role in determining the country’s foreign trade policy. On January 1, 2015, the Customs Union transformed into the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) implying a greater importance of economic integration and trade liberalization between the member states.
Kanat Makhanov is a research fellow at the Eurasian Institute of the International H.A Yassawi Kazakh-Turkish University. He holds a BA in Business Economics from the KIMEP University from 2012. In 2014 he earned his Masters degree in Economics from the University of Vigo (Spain), completing his thesis on “Industrial Specialization in autonomous regions of Spain and Kazakhstan”. His main research interests are Spatial Economics, Economic Geography, Regional Economics, Human and Economic Geography.