Uzbekistan’s so-called “spring” is more about upgrading this Central Asian state than providing political freedoms.
Seeking to attract more foreign investment from its prime position in China's huge Belt and Road trade project, Kazakhstan launched a new financial hub on Thursday which has already secured the backing of its giant neighbour.
At first glance, Kazakhstan’s new financial center is an exercise in ambition. Built out of the infrastructure of a futuristic, Epcot Center-like World Expo venue, the Astana International Financial Center at least doesn’t have to put in new wiring. It has everything. It wants to be everything, too.
Malaysian police said on Wednesday they would soon question former prime minister Najib Razak and his wife after finding nearly $275 million (208.29 million pounds) worth of jewellery, handbags, watches and other items at premises linked to the couple.
A collaborative investigation has found the specific offshore companies used to route into a Trump-branded property more than $3 million linked to a massive fraud case in Kazakhstan.
Any Kazakh official with a microphone in front of them would say President Nursultan Nazarbaev enjoys widespread popularity.
For years, journalists — and reportedly even federal investigators — have pored over U.S. President Donald Trump’s business deals for signs that criminals and their dirty money may have entered his orbit.