Kazakhstan
Country Spotlight
Kazakhstan inherited nuclear-tipped missiles, a nuclear weapon test site, and biological and chemical weapon production facilities when the Soviet Union collapsed. Since independence, Kazakhstan has dismantled and destroyed Soviet weapons systems and facilities left on its territory and has become a pioneer of international nonproliferation and disarmament diplomacy.
See Kazakhstan's performance in
Region Former Soviet Union
1,410 Nuclear warheads inherited after the fall of the Soviet Union
40% Of world’s uranium produced by Kazakhstan
1995 Completed the repatriation of its nuclear warhead inventory to Russia
104 R-36M ICBMs inherited from the Soviet missile complex, returned to Russia
Nuclear
- World’s largest producer of uranium and second largest uranium reserves, hosts the IAEA’s Low Enriched Uranium (LEU) Bank, operational in 2019
- Inherited Semipalatinsk nuclear weapon test site after the fall of the Soviet Union; fully dismantled in 2000; inaugural member of the Central Asian Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone (CANWFZ) in 2006
- Plans to build nuclear power plant, and in 2025 selected Russia and China to construct three nuclear power plants
Biological
- Site of major Soviet biological weapons facilities during the Cold War
- Has collaborated with the U.S. through the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program to dismantle and secure former bioweapons facilities
- Joined Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) in 2007, converted former biological weapons facilities to peaceful use
Missile
- Transferred all ICBMs to Russia for dismantlement by 1996
- Collaborated with U.S. through the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program to dismantle missile silos and other facilities
- Leases Baikonur Cosmodrome to Russia as space launch site
Chemical
- Inherited Soviet chemical weapons precursor factory at Pavlodar
- Joined the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 2000
- Not a member of the Australia Group, but adheres to its policies
Treaties and Regimes Memberships
Sources
Syed Adnan and Athar Bukhari, “Cooperative threat reduction: Case study of Kazakhstan – Analysis,” Eurasia Review, 13 June 2011, http://eurasiareview.com.
“Uranium and Nuclear Power in Kazakhstan,” World Nuclear Association, 14 March 2024, http://world-nuclear.org.
“R-36 / SS-18 SATAN,” Federation of American Scientists, 29 July 2000, www.fas.org.
“IAEA LEU Bank Becomes Operational with Delivery of Low Enriched Uranium,” www.iaea.org, 17 October 2019.
Togzhan Kassenova, “Biological threat reduction in Central Asia,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 18 July 2008, www.thebulletin.org.
“Russia to Boost Air Defenses with Ex-Soviet States,” RIA Novosti, 19 November 2010, http://en.rian.ru.
Gulbarshyn Bozheyeva, “The Pavlodar Chemical Weapons Plant in Kazakhstan: History and Legacy,” The Nonproliferation Review, Summer 2000, p. 141.
“Kazakhstan shines spotlight on nuclear-powered future,” World Nuclear News, April 16, 2024, www.world-nuclear-news.org.
“Uranium and Nuclear Power in Kazakhstan,” World Nuclear Association, June 19, 2025, world-nuclear.org.
Tina Dolbaia and Amanda Southfield, “Kazakhstan’s Emerging Civilian Nuclear Energy Industry: Implications for U.S. Strategic Interests,” Center for Strategic and International Studies, September 4, 2025, csis.org.