Political process

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Kremlin Wonders If Putin Will Follow in Kazakh Leader’s Footsteps

Vladimir Putin, right, with Nursultan Nazarbayev. Photographer: Alexey Nikolsky/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

An aging leader steps down as president but keeps a firm grip on the reins of power. For many in the Kremlin, the choreographed events unfolding in neighboring Kazakhstan are a model for Russian President Vladimir Putin to consider.

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Kazakhstan President Nazarbayev to step down after nearly 30 years in power

Kazakhstan's president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, seen in Brussels on Oct. 19, 2018. (Olivier Matthys/AP)

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev said Tuesday that he was stepping down, touching off a potentially perilous period of transition in one of the world’s most geopolitically fragile regions.

Nazarbayev has ruled Kazakhstan, Central Asia’s largest country, since it became an independent state with the collapse of the Soviet Union. On Tuesday, he said in a nationally televised address that after nearly 30 years in power, it was time to leave the presidency.

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Kazakhstan Draws Closer to Presidential Succession

Nursultan-Nazarbayev.jpgKazakhstani President Nursultan Nazarbayev will turn 79 in July, and talk of an impending succession has significantly intensified since the end of last year. Numerous local experts noted the harsh criticism that the president leveled at domestic utilities companies during a November 2018 session of the Security Council.

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Kazakhstan: Court clears woman charged of incitement to revolt

Aktau panoramaAkberdi’s husband was jailed for three years on similar charges.

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Will An Ascendant Uzbekistan Challenge Kazakhstan’s Leadership In Central Asia? – Analysis

Location of UzbekistanPresident Donald Trump met with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan on 16 May, an important breakthrough after the isolationism of the Karimov regime.

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The unsavoury alliance between oligarchs and London’s top lawyers

sergeimagnitsky graveIt’s a grubby business but these companies have no qualms about picking up the fat

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Geopolitics And Conflict Potential In Central Asia And South Caucasus – Analysis

Central AsiaTwo post-Soviet Caspian Sea sub-regions – Central Asia and the South Caucasus – have experienced different conflict scenarios.

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Is Kazakhstan’s political opposition creeping back?

forumjanaqazaqstanThe president’s advanced age instils his detractors with hope a change of leadership is imminent.

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Kazakhstan to boost president's 'ruler-for-life' status

putinazarbKazakhstan's parliament on Wednesday passed a bill that would cement its veteran ruler Nursultan Nazarbayev's status as the country's top power broker even if he decides to retire as president.

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What’s behind China’s anti-Kazakh campaign?

Zhenisnur Ayatkhanuly

If you're an ethnic Kazakh or a Kazakh citizen in northwest China, you can face detention on espionage and extremism charges. RU

Experts of the Committee against Torture Commend Kazakhstan for Enhanced Legislation

Experts of the Committee against Torture Commend Kazakhstan for Enhanced Legislation

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Kazakh official: Not the time to resolve differences through war

Kazakh official: Not the time to resolve differences through war

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Oil majors sued by Kazakh government over billions in revenue

Oil majors sued by Kazakh government over billions in revenue

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