RESTRICTED  
  
WT/ACC/KAZ/90  
 
6 November 2014  
(14-6506)  Page: 1/8  
 Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan  Original: English  
 
  ACCESSION OF KAZAKHSTAN 
COMMUNICATION FROM AND WITH UKRAINE 
As requested by the Delegation of Ukraine, please find attached to this document:  
 
 Annex I: Letter from H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minister of Economic 
Development and Trade of Ukraine, dated 30 October 2014, addressed to H.E. Mr. Vesa 
Himanen, Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan.   
 
As requested by H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairm an of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Kazakhstan, please find attached his exchange of communications with Ukraine and Kazakhstan, 
which is annexed as follows:  
 
 Annex II: Letter of acknowledgement from H. E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the 
Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan, dated 31 October 2014, addressed to 
H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine;    
 
 Annex III: Letter from H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the Working Party on the 
Accession of Kazakhstan, dated 31 October 2014, addressed to H.E. Mrs. Zhanar 
Aitzhanova, Minister of Economic Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan, inviting 
comments  from the Government of Kazakhstan on the substance of the letter from 
Ukraine,  dated 30 October 2014 (Annex I);    
 
 Annex IV: Letter from H.E. Mrs. Zhanar Aitzha nova, Minister of Economic Integration of 
the Republic of Kazakhstan, dated 5 November 2014, addressed to H.E. Mr. Vesa 
Himanen, Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan, in response to 
the Chairman's letter of 31 October 2014 (Annex III); and,    
 
 A n n e x  V :  L e t t e r  i n  s u b s t a n c e  f r o m  H . E .  M r .  V e s a  H i m a n e n ,  C h a i r m a n  o f  t h e  W o r k i n g  
Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan, dated 5 November 2014,  addressed to 
H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minist er of Economic Development and Trade of 
Ukraine.   
 
 
_______________ 
 WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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  ANNEX I 
Letter from H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minister of Economic Development and Trade of 
Ukraine, dated 30 October 2014, addressed to H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the Working 
Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan 
30 October 2014, Kyiev 
  
Your Excellency, 
 
Taking this opportunity I would like to express assurances of my highest consideration and 
inform you of the following. 
 
Ukraine has been supporting Kazakhstan's accession process since it became a Member of 
the WP in 2008. 
 
Being vigilant because of the extreme challeng es today's developments in politics may imply 
for trade.  Ukraine relies on sustainability of th e multilateral trading system.  We are of the view 
that Kazakhstan's contribution to it may be a unique one, cementing not only its independent 
sovereign policy but adding a solid block to the fundamentals of the WTO, especially valued in terms of practical implementation of obligations.  
I hope you now understand why we are very much interested in having Kazakhstan in this 
organization.  We are always happy to note and support the progress in this accession and would 
encourage the Kazakhstan's government not to lose momentum. 
 
As you are aware Ukraine initiated bilateral negotiations with Kazakhstan and forwarded an 
initial request on goods and services market access in May, 2014.  Furthermore, for transparency 
purpose Ukraine has informed of this all WP Members by circulating a document WT/ACC/KAZ/80 
dated 24 June 2014.  
Ukraine previously raised concern about the la ck of response from Kazakhstan and regrets 
to note that it has been over a month since the informal meeting in Geneva 25 September, but 
Kazakhstan has not yet responded to Ukraine.  We are seriously concerned about the delay, which I, taking this opportunity, once again bring to your attention.  I would highly appreciate, if you as 
the WP Chairman with broad authority and being gu ided by Art. XII of the Marrakesh Agreement, 
could work with Kazakhstan and assist the proces s by steering the negotiating team in the right 
direction. 
 
Lack of response may mean an unnecesary delay in Kazakhstan's accession, which Ukraine 
is clearly willing to avoid, but given the lack of c ooperation from Kazkhstan, Ukraine will not be in 
a position to resolve the matter unilaterally for and instead of the acceding government. 
 
Ukraine encourages Kazakhstan to engage constructively in the bilateral process without 
politicizing it.  Prompt response from Kazakhstan would very much help to complete this accession 
by the end of this year, as expected by Kazakhstan and all WP Members. 
  
Respectfully yours, 
  
Valeriy Piatnytskyi 
Acting Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine 
 WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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  ANNEX II 
Letter from H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Kazakhstan, dated 31 October 2014, addressed to H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minister of 
Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine 
 
31 October 2014 
 
 
Dear Minister Piatnytskyi,    
Thank you for your letter, dated 30 October 2014,  addressed to me as the Chairman of the 
Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan, on the subject of the bilateral market access negotiations undertaken within the framework of the WTO accession of Kazakhstan. 
 
I have carefully noted the contents of the letter from your Government.  Following your 
request, I will invite the Acceding Government of  Kazakhstan to comment on the substance of your 
letter.  I will also consult Members of the Working Party to ascertain the most practical way 
forward.  I would also request a statement from the WTO Secretariat so that I can stand advised on standard accession market access best practices.  I am hopeful that the information I should gather and the sum of my consultations would provide us with a platform to determine how best to 
address the issues and concerns you have raised. 
 
Ukraine is an important WTO Member.  Having undergone WTO accession negotiations, 
I believe that Ukraine's experience from its accession negotiations is invaluable.  I am hopeful that 
the WTO and I, as Chairman, can continue to count on your advice, experience and support, as we 
move ahead together, to finalize the accession negotiations of Kazakhstan over the next few 
weeks.  I fully share your assessment of the uniqu e contributions that Kazakhstan would offer as a 
WTO Member.  
Sincerely yours, 
 
  
Vesa Himanen 
Chairman 
Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan 
 
  cc:  
 
H.E. Mr. Andrii GONCHARUK Ambassador  
Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the WTO  
 Mr. Chiedu OSAKWE 
Director 
WTO Accessions Division WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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  ANNEX III 
Letter from H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Kazakhstan, dated 31 October 2014, addressed to H.E. Mrs. Zhanar Aitzhanova, Minister of 
Economic Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan 
 
31 October 2014 
 
 
Dear Minister Aitzhanova,    
I am writing to bring to your attention the letter, which I received from the Government of 
Ukraine, yesterday, 30 October 2014.  In the letter, attached, H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Uk raine raises several questions and concerns in 
relation to bilateral market access negotiations between Ukraine and Kazakhstan.      
 I have written to Kiev to acknowledge receipt of the letter from Minister Piatnytskyi.  
However, before responding substantively, I wo uld welcome comments from your Government to 
clarify and/or elaborate on the substance of the letter from Ukraine.   
 I look forward to an early feedback in light of the common purpose of Members of the 
Working Party to advance the accession negotiations of Kazakhstan to a conclusion over the next 
few weeks.       
 
 
Sincerely yours, 
 
 
 
Vesa Himanen 
Chairman 
Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhstan 
 
 
 
cc:   
H.E. Mr. Mukhtar TILEUBERDI 
Ambassador/Permanent Representative 
Permanent Mission of the Re public of Kazakhstan  
 
Ms Zharkin KAKIMZHANOVA 
Counsellor/Head of the WTO Section Permanent Mission of the Republic of Kazakhstan 
 
Chiedu OSAKWE Director  WTO Accessions Division WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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  ANNEX IV 
Letter from H.E. Mrs. Zhanar Aitzhanova, Minister  of Economic Integration of the Republic of 
Kazakhstan, dated 5 November 2014, addressed to H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the 
Working Party on the Accession of Kazakhsta 
5 November 2014 
 Dear Ambassador Himanen, 
 
Let me start by thanking you for your letter dated 31 October 2014 inviting the response 
of the Government of Kazakhstan to the communica tion addressed to you from the Government of 
Ukraine.  Following consultations within the Government, I would like to respond to your request in 
the paragraphs that follow. 
As a result of complex and challenging negotiations, the process of Kazakhstan's accession 
to the WTO has approached its final and decisive stage. The Government of Kazakhstan is fully 
committed to conclude the accession negotiations this year.  We appeal to all WTO Members to 
facilitate the conclusion of the accession process after 19 years of negotiations and not make it more difficult. 
 
Specifically, with regard to your invitation to comment on market access, it should be 
stated that, in total, Kazakhstan concluded bilateral agreements on goods market access  with 30 members and on services market access with 15 members of the WTO. These agreements were 
duly deposited with the WTO Director General. As Working Party Chairman, you announced the 
conclusion of all bilateral negotiations in 2012 and mandated the WTO Secretariat to consolidate the results of the bilateral agreements and circulated them to the signatory members. 
The consolidated Draft Schedule of Specific Commitments on Services has been verified and set 
aside for final adoption. The consolidated Draft Schedule of Tariff Conc essions and Commitments 
on Goods is going through the technical verification process.  
  
 Let me also note that since both Kazakhstan and Ukraine became independent in 1991, they applied a free trade regime based on the bi lateral Agreement on Free Trade between the 
Government of Kazakhstan and the Government of Ukraine of 28
 April 1995 and the Free Trade 
Agreement between the CIS member States of 18 October 2011.  
 In this context, the Government of Ukraine promised to support Kazakhstan's accession to 
the WTO through the letter of 28 December 2012 addressed to me from Valeryi Piatnytskyi, then 
Commissioner for European Integration.  
Kazakhstan was therefore surprised to receive the Initial Request for market access 
negotiations in goods and services from the Government of Ukraine on 23 May 2014, two years 
after the announcement made by the Chairman of the Working Party on conclusion of bilateral 
market access negotiations of Kazakhstan.  
 
Upon receipt of the request from Ukraine, the Government of Kazakhstan asked for the 
advice of the WTO Secretariat with regard to th e best practices used for addressing the similar 
situations in other accession cases. The advice that the Government of Kazakhstan received from the Secretariat could be summarised as follows: 
 The Chairman of the Working Party formally announced the conclusion of the bilateral 
negotiations on market access. 
 The results of the bilateral negotiations have been consolidated and circulated.  
 The long-standing GATT/WTO accession market access best practices prohibit the tabling 
of market access request after the circulation of consolidated draft schedules because it 
would give an unfair advantage to the requesting member.  
 The Secretariat informed the Government of Kazakhstan that it has advised Ukraine to 
withdraw its request, and informed the Working Party Chairman accordingly.  
 WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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   In parallel, the request of Ukraine for market access negotiations has been discussed in the 
bilateral meetings between the Heads of State an d Heads of the Government of Kazakhstan and 
Ukraine at every possible occasion.  
Most notably, the issue has been discussed at  the bilateral meeting between the President 
of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev and President of Ukraine P. Poroshenko in Minsk on 25-26 August 
2014, where the leadership of Ukraine expressed poli tical support to Kazakhstan's accession to the 
WTO. 
In addition, the Prime-Minister of Kazakhstan K. Massimov sent the letter to the 
Prime-Minister of Ukraine A. Yatsenyuk reiteratin g the strategic importance of the long-standing 
trade and economic cooperation between our count ries and the willingness of Kazakhstan to 
address any issues affecting trade in a traditional bilateral format. 
   It has been also mentioned in the letter of Prime Minister K. Massimov that Kazakhstan is 
committed to continue a free trade regime with Ukraine.    
 
In conclusion, I would like to appeal through yo u, as Chairman of the Working Party, to the 
friendly Government of Ukraine to give effect to its long-standing commitment to support 
Kazakhstan's accession to the WTO. This would help us to maintain momentum and achieve our 
common goal to conclude the WTO accession negotiations in December 2014. 
 I would be grateful if this letter is circulated together with the letter from the Government 
of Ukraine to all members of the Working Party, if it is your decision to circulate these letters.  
 Using this opportunity, let me express on behalf of the Government of Kazakhstan our 
deep gratitude for your committed leadership and dedication to Kazakhstan's accession to the 
WTO.  
 
 
Sincerely, 
 
 
 
Zhanar Aitzhanova 
Minister for Economic Integration 
of the Republic of Kazakhstan 
 
 
   
Cc:  
 H.E. Ambassador Roberto Azevêdo 
Director-General  
World Trade Organization  
 
All Members  
of the Working Party  on the Accession of Kazakhstan  
 
Mr. Chiedu Osakwe  
Director  WTO Accessions Division 
 
 WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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  ANNEX V 
Letter from H.E. Mr. Vesa Himanen, Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Kazakhstan, dated 5 November 2014,  addressed to H.E. Mr. Valeriy Piatnytskyi, Acting Minister of 
Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine. 
 
 
5 November 2014 
 
Dear Minister Piatnytskyi,   
Thank you very much indeed for your letter dated 30 October 2014 on the subject of 
bilateral market access negotiations with Kazakhstan.  And thank you for your understanding in 
granting me time to undertake due diligence: to seek comments from Kazakhstan, the Acceding Government in question, and, as Chairman of th e Working Party, consult with a range of Members 
and, ask advice from the WTO Secretariat on GATT/WTO accessions market access best practices.    
 
Attached to this letter, Minister, is the re sponse that I received from Kazakhstan.   
 
Having undertaken a careful review of the substa nce of your letter, and having regard to the 
essence of advice from a broad range of Members and the Secretariat, I would like to reconfirm that all bilateral market access negotiations with the Acceding Government of Kazakhstan were 
concluded in 2012.  As Chairman, I announced this to be the state-of-play at the 11
th Working 
Party Meeting on 18 April 2012.  It would be unfair to subject Kazakhstan to new bilateral market access negotiations, two years after the conclusion of all bilateral market accession negotiations, 
following which the results were deposited with the Secretariat, consolidated and circulated to 
Signatory Members.  As a key WTO Member, and as  is already known to Ukraine, the technical 
verification of the Consolidated Draft Schedule of Specific Commitments on Services was 
concluded, by consensus, by Signatory Members and has been set-aside.  The Draft Services 
Schedule, now, only awaits final adoption by the Working Party as part of the Draft Accession Package of Kazakhstan.  The draft Goods Schedule is in its fourth revision by Signatory Members.  It is poised for final verificati on over the next few weeks.   
 
 Clear advice I have received from Members is that the negotiating process, including on accessions, should continue to give proof of pr edictability and transparency.  The goal of all 
Members is to achieve universality of trade and membership.  As a horizo ntal point, Director-
General Roberto Azevêdo has underlined WTO accession as a strategic priority; a goal around which Members have rallied.  Along these lines, the Director-General considers that the rules-
based Multilateral Trading System should continue to demonstrate its capacity to deliver concrete 
results, predictably and rationally, so as to ex tend the reach and coverage of the rules in the 
global economy; and  thus contributing to global economic growth, job creation and strengthening the rule of law and good governance.   
 
 The Accession negotiations of Kazakhstan are at  a critical point.  The guidance and signals 
being received from the WTO membership are to conclude this accession, on the right terms, over 
the next few weeks.  I am also using the opportunity of this communication to urge all Members of 
the Working Party to engage over the next few weeks, intensively and constructively, to advance this accession to a conclusion, after eighteen years.   
 
As requested by both your Delegation and the Acceding Government of Kazakhstan, I have 
asked the Secretariat to circulate our exchange of communication to all Members of the Working Party.   
 
 WT/ACC/KAZ/90 
 
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  I very much look forward to working ever more closely with you, Minister Piatnytskyi and, in 
doing so, ask that you accept, as always, the assurances of my highest consideration.     
Yours Sincerely, 
  
 
Vesa Himanen 
Chairman 
Working Party of the Accession of Kazakhstan 
 
  
Cc:  
 Mr. Chiedu Osakwe 
Director 
WTO Accessions Division  
 
__________