The US administration has stated that it suspects a global scheme under which goods of Chinese origin could have been routed to the United States via third countries in order to circumvent American tariffs. Kazakhstan was among the countries included in the published list of states considered at risk of participation in such schemes.
WHAT THE US DOCUMENT SAYS
As reported by Eurasianet, the issue concerns so-called illegal transshipment of goods. According to the document from the US presidential administration, entitled "The Great Transshipment Scam", goods from countries facing high American duties could have passed through nations with lower tariffs.
The report's authors indicate that such schemes may involve repackaging, relabelling, re-invoicing, minimal processing of products, or the false declaration of country of origin.
At the same time, the document notes that some changes in trade routes may be linked to legitimate shifts in production, investment, and supply chains.
HOW LARGE IS THE SUSPECTED SCHEME
The White House has included more than 40 countries and economies in the described network. According to the estimates set out in the document, the volume of trade that the authors associate with the suspected tariff evasion ranges from $40 billion to $303 billion per year, depending on the calculation methodology used.
The US administration believes that the main aim of such schemes could be to maintain the supply of Chinese goods to the American market while bypassing the tariffs in force.
HOW KAZAKHSTAN ENDED UP ON THE LIST
Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Uzbekistan have been placed in the Tier III category in the report. This includes smaller economies with relatively lower suspected volumes of transshipment, but with certain individual factors that the authors regard as vulnerabilities.
Among these factors are low labour costs, free zones, access to borders or ports, customs warehouses, specialised assembly facilities, and limited customs oversight.
WHAT EXACTLY THE US CLAIMS ABOUT KAZAKHSTAN
The specific role of Kazakhstan in the suspected "shadow transshipment network" is not detailed. The report does not provide individual examples of operations, companies, or shipments specifically linked to Kazakhstan.
The material offers a more detailed description of the role of Azerbaijan and Georgia in rail and overland transit, but no comparable details are provided in relation to Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan.
WHY THIS MATTERS FOR KAZAKHSTAN
Kazakhstan has appeared in the American report against the backdrop of the development of international trade routes and the region's logistics ties. The country is also a participant in the "Belt and Road" initiative and is connected to the emerging Middle Corridor network.
At the same time, specific legal consequences for Kazakhstan following its inclusion in the Tier III category have not been specified. As one of the measures against the suspected circumvention of tariffs, the White House is proposing an artificial intelligence-based trade monitoring system called America's Detective Border.
