As he laid flowers recently at the grave of Uzbek strongman Islam Karimov, neighbouring Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev could have been forgiven an extra pause for thought.

US and Dutch authorities are seeking a record US$ 1.4 billion settlement from Nordic telecommunications firm Telia Company to resolve allegations of large-scale bribery during the company’s entry into Uzbekistan in 2007, the company said Thursday.

ISIS often features Central Asia’s children in its propaganda videos, labeling them “Cubs of the Caliphate.”

Tony Blair set the stage for a potential political comeback last night with the shock announcement that he is shutting down his secretive money-making empire.

There is nothing special about Taraz, who runs in a 0-80 handicap at Pontefract (5.40) but there's plenty out of the ordinary about the four-year-old's owner, Nurlan Bizakov, all the way from Kazakhstan.

The Opec and IEA reports this week pretty much buried any remaining hopes of substantial market rebalancing this year.