Author: Amir Assylov

Kazakh authorities should fully investigate a recent wave of cyberattacks on independent media outlets and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. Cyberattacks by unidentified perpetrators have targeted at least nine independent media outlets and multiple journalists in Kazakhstan since November 2023, according to data shared with CPJ by local press freedom group Adil Soz, which issued a statement on the attacks January 19, 2024, and several of the journalists, who spoke to CPJ.The attacks, which have targeted well-known independent media including news agency KazTAG, and popular social media-based outlets like AIRAN and Obozhayu, included distributed denial-of-service…

HONG KONG, Dec 14 (Reuters) – Every day, nearly 60 fully loaded very large crude-oil carriers sail between the Persian Gulf and Chinese ports, carrying about half of the oil that powers the world’s second-largest economy. As the vessels enter the South China Sea, they ply waters increasingly controlled by China’s growing military, from the missile batteries and airfields at its bases on disputed islands to its stealthy Type 055 destroyers. But when crossing the Indian Ocean, joined by others headed to China from Africa and Brazil, these tankers lack protection in a naval theatre dominated by the U.S. A dozen military…

China claimed on Saturday that the US missile destroyer “Hopper” illegally entered Chinese territorial waters in the South China Sea. “On November 25, US missile destroyer ‘Hopper’ illegally entered China’s territorial waters in the Xisha Islands without China’s approval,” state-run Global Times quoted the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command spokesperson as saying. “The PLA Southern Theater Command organized naval and aerial forces to lawfully track, monitor, warn and expel the intruder,” it added. This week, the US and the Philippines conducted joint air and maritime patrols, involving the two air forces and navies, in the disputed waters of…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan needs more than $600 billion to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, said Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov, urging relevant ministries to intensify efforts to attract investments in green technologies during a Dec. 14 meeting of the council on the transition to a green economy, reported the Prime Minister’s press service. According to Chair of the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market Madina Abylkassymova, to date, the country has created the necessary legislative and regulatory framework for the development of green financing, adopting a new Environmental Code and making amendments for the issue and circulation…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan embarked on a mission 13 years ago to restore, develop, and breed its purebred national Tazy dogs, leading to the establishment of the Nomad National Hunting Club, which endeavors to promote and consolidate the efforts of its members. The club, an assignee of the public association Federation for the Restoration and Breeding of National and Rare Dog Breeds, commenced its operation in November 2010. During the 1990s, the traditional use of Tazy dogs for hunting in Kazakhstan began to decline, which led to a decrease in the popularity and number of the breed. From over 3,000 Tazy…

Kazakhstan’s National Bank has issued a digital analogue to the national currency, the tenge, as part of a stated attempt to streamline everyday financial transactions and reduce corruption. Speaking at a press event on November 21, National Bank deputy chairman Berik Sholpankulov described the Digital Tenge, or DT, as “a new payment tool that meets the realities and challenges of the digital innovative economy.” While sharing some features with cryptocurrencies, DT is distinct in important ways. Most notably, it is centrally issued by the National Bank rather than circulating within an open and unregulated blockchain network. Binur Zhalenov, head of the National…

Amsterdam, Berlin (16/11 – 10) Diwali, a.k.a. Deepavali, is a Hindu religious celebration as well as a traditional festival, celebrated across India. Customarily known as “The Festival of Lights”, as it is festooned with arrays of colored illumination, it is held from October to November every year. Deepavali 2023 was celebrated on November 12, over a five-day period. Deepavali is the annual Hindu celebration of the triumph of light over darkness. Rarely will you visit a Hindu home during Deepavali without passing under a doorway highlighted by a beautiful, vividly-colored picture created out of flour, rice or flower petals. It…

ASTANA – The Kazakh government approved the Accessible Internet national project on Nov. 7, which aims to provide the population with broadband access to the worldwide network at a speed of at least 100 megabits per second (Mbps), reported the Prime Minister’s press service.  October marked the first results as Kazakhstan introduced broadband internet in 10 rural schools using SpaceX Starlink technology in a test mode. It is now planned to provide 2,000 rural schools with high-speed Starlink internet, a satellite internet constellation operated by the American SpaceX aerospace company. The national project scheduled for 2024 – 2027 will receive a budget…

KYIV — Ukrainian special forces early on Tuesday struck two Russian military airfields, saying they successfully destroyed nine Russian military helicopters, an anti-aircraft missile system, and an ammunition warehouse. The attacks took place in occupied Berdyansk, a southern city in the Zaporizhzhia region; and at an airfield in Luhansk, an occupied city in eastern Ukraine. The special forces also managed to successfully damage airfield runways, Ukraine said, in what it called “Operation Dragonfly.” “The ammunition depot in Berdyansk detonated until 4 a.m. The detonation in Luhansk continued until 11 a.m. Losses in the enemy’s manpower amount to dozens of dead…

Kazakhstan is prepared to consider increasing oil supplies to Uzbekistan if the price offered by Tashkent is right, Kazakh Deputy Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said on October 11, while dismissing news reports that Russian oil deliveries were displacing its own supplies in the Uzbek market. Uzbekistan has traditionally struggled to import enough oil because of long transport distances, resulting in lower utilisation rates at its refineries. The oil that the country does import primarily comes from Russia rather than neighbouring Kazakhstan. Russia’s Gazprom Neft has committed to delivering 300,000 tonnes per year (6,000 barrels per day) to Uzbekistan via Kazakhstan…