Kazakh govt refuses to comply with court ruling on Naftogaz' lawsuit against Gazprom
The Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) court's decision to forcibly recover $1.4 billion from Russia's Gazprom in favor of Naftogaz Ukrainy will not be enforced in Kazakhstan, the republic's Justice Minister, Yerlan Sarsembayev, stated in an interview with the zakon.kz portal.
"The Republic of Kazakhstan will not become a transit platform for the enforcement of decisions that have no legal connection to it. The Republic's legal mechanisms do not provide for the consideration of disputes outside its jurisdiction, and therefore the AIFC Court decision in question will not be enforced in Kazakhstan," he said.
He noted that the court order was issued unilaterally. "This is not a final decision; it is for informational purposes only and has not yet entered into legal force. The defendant has the right to appeal the ruling within 14 days of its issuance," he added.
As Sarsembayev noted, the case lacks "the key elements of a jurisdictional connection with the AIFC": Gazprom is not a participant in the AIFC; the disputed agreement was not concluded at the AIFC; the dispute is not governed by AIFC law; and the parties did not enter into an agreement to refer recognition and enforcement issues to the AIFC court.
