Author: Jazira Iliyaseva

Global economic activity has been showing a positive trend since the start of the year. Kazakhstan also records a significant increase in business activity indicators. Following the results of the first five months of this year, the country’s GDP growth is estimated at 4.5 percent, as stated by National Bank of Kazakhstan Governor Galymzhan Pirmatov during a plenary session of the Senate. It should be noted that many sectors of the country’s economy faced additional pressure last year due to the geopolitical situation. “Inflation in Kazakhstan reached 20.3 percent by the end of 2022, mostly due to food price increases,…

Kazakhstan submitted an application to the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI), or the International Canine Federation, for the recognition of Kazakh Tazy and Tobet dog breeds. This matter will be considered at the organization’s General Assembly on August 21-22 in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation’s main requirement is the presence of a sufficient number of pedigrees and dog breeds. “In order to establish the authenticity of the Tazy and Tobet dog breeds, considered as one of the seven treasures of the Kazakh people, it is essential to have a homogeneous pedigree without crossbreeding with other dog breeds. In addition, the breed must…

SINGAPORE – The state visit by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to the Chinese city of Xian and his participation in the China-Central Asia Summit last week emphasized the importance of bilateral relations and multilateral interaction. It highlighted Kazakhstan’s eagerness to engage with China, said Raffaello Pantucci, a senior fellow at the S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore and a senior associate fellow at the London-based Royal United Services Institute, in an interview with The Astana Times. Pantucci is an author of several publications about China’s relations with Central Asia, including the book “Sinostan: China’s Inadvertent Empire.” According to the expert,…

Kazakhstan’s state oil and gas firm KazMunayGas and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) are discussing the possible expansion of two oil pipelines, KazMunayGas officials have told Russian news agency Interfax. The Kenkiyak-Atyrau and Kenkiyak-Kumkol oil pipelines could see their throughput raised, which could lift the volumes of Kazakhstan’s crude oil exports to China. The capacity of the Kenkiyak-Atyrau oil pipeline could be doubled to 12 million tons annually from 6 million tons, while the Kenkiyak-Kumkol pipeline capacity could be expanded to 15 million tons per year from 10 million tons annually at present. Last year, 4.5 million tons of oil were…

Borat put Kazakhstan on the map. In the years after its release, tourist visas to Kazakhstan rose tenfold. You remember the fake mustache and funny accent but how much did that movie really teach you about this country in Central Asia? Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country in the world with one of its lowest population densities. It lies mostly in Central Asia with a small portion crossing the border into Eastern Europe. It’s favorable climate and large areas of grassland have made Kazakhstan’s terrain ideal for a nomadic lifestyle. Historically, Kazakhstan has been inhabited by nomadic Turkic groups who migrated seasonally to…

(Reuters) – Kazakhstan have been placed on World Athletics’ watch list following an investigation of suspicious competition results conducted by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), the sport’s governing body said on Wednesday. If a country is on the watch list, any results achieved at competitions held by the member federation on their territory will not be recognised by World Athletics. This affects an athlete’s chances of qualifying for the World Athletics Championships in Budapest this year and the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris unless they take part in international competitions recognised by the governing body. “This decision reflects the high degree…

QONAEV, Kazakhstan — The Almaty regional court in southern Kazakhstan has rejected an appeal filed by noted dissident Ermek Narymbaev (aka Narymbai) against a lower court’s refusal to grant him an early release. Narymbaev’s lawyer, Zhanar Balghabaeva, told RFE/RL on February 8 that the court was unable to clearly explain its decision in the courtroom and expressed hope that proper justification would be shown in the court’s written decision, which has yet to reach her client.The Qonaev city court near Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty, ruled on December 14 that Narymbaev did not deserve an early release on parole due to…

ASTANA – Kazakhstan granted citizenship to more than 22,000 people last year, reported the Ministry of Internal Affairs on Feb. 20. Of them, 17,676 applicants were kandas, a term referring to ethnic Kazakhs returning to Kazakhstan. Some 1,287 people from Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia used a simplified registration procedure, and 1,777 acquired the Kazakh citizenship according to the Convention on the Nationality of Married Women. At least 20,000 people became citizens of Kazakhstan through a simplified procedure. Every year, around 20,000 people apply for Kazakhstan’s citizenship, with over one million people receiving it in the past 30 years. Source :…