The United States and Kazakhstan have many common interests in the field of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. On August 29, 1991, when Nursultan Nazarbayev closed down the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, it has been a world leader in the movement for non-proliferation. In this capacity it has worked closely with Washington to advance non-proliferation further. In 2006 it joined with its Central Asian neighbors Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan to affirm that the entire region would forever be a nuclear weapons free zone. To be sure, the U.S. initially opposed this out of fear that it would exclude the transport of nuclear material across the region, but in the end this step, too, earned strong endorsements from Washington. Beyond this, Kazakhstan has educated a younger generation that is open to the world, clearly oriented towards free and legal markets, and eager to participate in the affairs of their government through normal democratic channels.