Russia ratifies updated agreement on duty-free oil, petroleum product trade with Kazakhstan

MOSCOW. July 7 (Interfax) - Russia has ratified a protocol renewing the agreement with Kazakhstan on oil and petroleum products trade procedures in an updated version that simplifies several processes at its Wednesday session.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the relevant law on July 7, the legal acts website says.

The protocol was signed in Astana on November 27, 2024. Under the revised terms, both countries will maintain duty-free trade for oil and petroleum products, exempt from export customs duties and equivalent taxes or fees. However, shipments will still be tracked: oil and petroleum products classified under Group 27 of the Eurasian Economic Union's customs code and exported from Russia to Kazakhstan must undergo customs declaration as if destined outside the EAEU.

Pipeline exports, which were exempt from declaration between 2022 and 2024, will now enjoy permanent exemption under the updated agreement.

The protocol also removes a clause referring unresolved disputes to the Court of the Eurasian Economic Community, leaving consultations and negotiations as the sole means of conflict resolution.

The agreement's validity has been extended. Originally set to expire on Jan. 1, 2019, with automatic five-year renewals unless terminated, it will now remain in force until Jan. 1, 2028, with further five-year extensions possible unless either party gives at least six months' notice of withdrawal.

The protocol entered provisional application 10 days after being signed in Astana, pending full legal ratification in both countries. During this transitional period, preferential treatment did not apply to export taxes and fees.