March 2010

31 Mar

Events and opinions

3316

Rights at issue as U.N. chief tours Central Asia

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon sets off later this week on a tour of the former Soviet republics of Central Asia that is likely to be closely watched for how strongly he raises human rights issues... read more..

30 Mar

Events and opinions

3236

Kazakhstan accuses Karachaganak consortium of “illegal profits”

(SRI) - Kazakhstan's financial police accused the Karachaganak Petroleum Operating (KPO) consortium last Friday of illegally earning $708 million in 2008, claiming it profited from oil output that was read more..

30 Mar

Events and opinions

2997

Uzbekistan limits foreign travel for doctors

Authorities in Uzbekistan have restricted the country's doctors from freely traveling abroad to international medical conferences, a think tank in the Central Asian nation said Friday. Limiting U... read more..

China, $165 Million, and Kazakhstan's Second Son-in-Law

27 Mar

Events and opinions

10885

China, $165 Million, and Kazakhstan's Second Son-in-Law

Awhile ago, I received an email from an old source about some documents that could be had in London. They regarded a well-worn story, he said – the business dealings of the first family in Kazakhstan.... read more..

27 Mar

Events and opinions

3947

Kazakh Spat Casts Light on China Deals

Exiled Banker Alleges Chinese Oil Firm Routed $166 Million to Associate of Top Oil Executive, as Part of 2003 State Sale An acrimonious battle between two prominent Kazakh businessmen has trigger... read more..

26 Mar

Events and opinions

3083

Kyrgyz leader says Western democracy unsuitable

Kyrgyzstan's president said Tuesday that Western-style democracy has run its course in the ex-Soviet Central Asian country, prompting fears of a further decline in political freedoms. President K... read more..

26 Mar

Economy

4709

Sinopec to Build Gas Chemicals Plant in Kazakhstan

March 25 (Bloomberg) -- China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., the Hong Kong-listed company known as Sinopec, won a contract to build a $1.7 billion polypropylene plant in western Kazakhstan. Sinopec ... read more..

UZBEKISTAN: NAZARBAYEV MAKES DIPLOMATIC TRADE-OFF WITH KARIMOV

25 Mar

Events and opinions

3006

UZBEKISTAN: NAZARBAYEV MAKES DIPLOMATIC TRADE-OFF WITH KARIMOV

Kazakhstani President Nursultan Nazarbayev got what he wanted out of Uzbekistan. During talks in Tashkent on March 17, Nazarbayev secured Uzbek support for his cherished aim of hosting a summit of the... read more..

25 Mar

Events and opinions

2748

Kazakh KazMunaiGas EP says oil unit strike over. Lost 12,000 tonnes of oil output

ALMATY, March 19 (Reuters) - Oil workers at Kazakh producer KazMunaiGas Exploration and Production (KMG EP) (KMGq.L) have ended a three-week strike at the OzenMunaiGas (OMG) oil-production unit, the c... read more..

25 Mar

Events and opinions

3019

Kazakh Plant Project Stalled by LyondellBasell Woes

March 19 (Bloomberg) -- The Development Bank of Kazakhstan will wait to finance a local $6 billion natural-gas chemical plant as the project's strategic partner, LyondellBasell Industries AF SCA, seek... read more..

19 Mar

Events and opinions

3170

Fall Alijew: Keine Pflicht zur Auslieferung

Hartnäckig hält sich die Behauptung, dass Österreich den ehemaligen kasachischen Botschafter selbst strafrechtlich verfolgen oder an seine Heimat übergeben müsse. Doch diese Aussage ist nicht haltbar.... read more..

18 Mar

Events and opinions

3571

KAZAKHSTAN: EX-NUCLEAR BOSS SENTENCED AMID CLAIMS OF POLITICAL REPRISALS

The former boss of Kazakhstan's nuclear industry has been sentenced to 14 years in prison on corruption charges amid claims that the trial was politically motivated. Mukhtar Dzhakishev, the 46-year-ol... read more..

16 Mar

Events and opinions

5293

Kazakhstan creates new oil and gas ministry in a major government reshuffle

(SRI) - In a government reorganization last Friday, Kazakhstan's president Nursultan Nazarbayev created a new oil and gas ministry and reshuffled the cabinet. Sauat Mynbayev , the former Minister read more..

16 Mar

Events and opinions

2842

Kazakhstan Detains Officials After Deadly Flood

ALMATY (Reuters) -- Kazakh police have detained several regional officials in connection with a probe into floods last week that killed 34 people near the financial capital Almaty, the Interior Minist... read more..

China's thirst for energy fuels westward expansion

15 Mar

Economy

3844

China's thirst for energy fuels westward expansion

ALMATY (Reuters) - China's insatiable demand for energy to power its economy has made it a serious contender in the fight for control over vast energy resources in its thinly populated and impoverishe... read more..

15 Mar

Events and opinions

2669

Kazakh president wants prosecutions over flooding

Wealthiest of the former Soviet republics promotes a glitzy image to foreign investors but struggles to maintain its ageing infrastructure and has been hit by a series of disasters in recent years as ... read more..

Kazakh court jails nuclear executive for 14 years

15 Mar

Events and opinions

2696

Kazakh court jails nuclear executive for 14 years

The lawyer for a former head of Kazkahstan's state nuclear energy company says his client has been sentenced to 14 years in jail on charges of embezzlement and corruption. Lawyer Nurlan Bisekeyev... read more..

15 Mar

Economy

3474

China in Central Asia: latest investments

March 11 (Reuters) - Energy-hungry China is stepping up its presence in former Soviet Central Asia by handing out billions of dollars in loans, snapping up energy assets and building a gas pipeline fr... read more..

12 Mar

Events and opinions

2986

CNPC says complied with laws in 2003 Kazakh deal

ALMATY, March 11 (Reuters) - Chinese state-run energy firm CNPC on Thursday said it complied with applicable laws in its 2003 purchase of a stake in a Kazakh oil company after Kazakh financial police ... read more..

12 Mar

Events and opinions

2945

KAZAKHSTAN: FALLEN TYCOONS STILL RANKLE RULING ELITE

Fresh salvoes are being fired in a running battle between members of Kazakhstan's ruling elite and tycoons who have fallen out of favor. As oligarch Mukhtar Ablyazov -- wanted in Kazakhstan on fr... read more..

12 Mar

Events and opinions

2529

KAZAKHSTAN: ASTANA INTENSIFYING EFFORTS TO HOLD OSCE SUMMIT

Kazakhstan is redoubling efforts to get two important holdouts - the United States and Uzbekistan - to endorse an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe summit in 2010. EurasiaNet recentl... read more..

11 Mar

Corruption!

4012

Kazakh KazMunaiGas EP says strike impact limited

ALMATY, March 9 (Reuters) - Kazakh oil producer KazMunaiGas Exploration and Production (KMGq.L: Quote, Profile, Research) RDGZ.KZ said on Tuesday that the impact from a strike at one of its units was ... read more..

11 Mar

Political process

3765

U.S. watchdog says Kazakhstan violating OSCE values

ALMATY (Reuters) - A U.S. media group has criticized Kazakhstan for effectively banning an opposition newspaper, saying the move violated the core values of Europe's main democracy watchdog, chaired b... read more..

11 Mar

Events and opinions

4276

Pressure Mounts on Kazakh Oil Chief

Timur Kulibayev, the billionaire chairman of Kazakhstan's state oil company Kazmunaigas (KMG) and the son-in-law of President Nursultan Nazarbayev, is coming under mounting pressure as new allegations... read more..

11 Mar

Events and opinions

2705

Kazakh police check high-level graft claims

ASTANA, March 10 (Reuters) - Kazakh financial police said on Wednesday they were conducting a preliminary investigation into allegations of corruption against President Nursultan Nazarbayev's powerful... read more..

OSCE Official Says Kazakhs Must Loosen Media Grip

09 Mar

Events and opinions

2807

OSCE Official Says Kazakhs Must Loosen Media Grip

Kazakhstan must loosen its grip on the media further, an OSCE official has said, even though the former Soviet state has relaxed some controls since taking over as Europe's main rights and security wa... read more..

09 Mar

Extra

3917

KAZAKHSTAN THREATENS UK OIL INTERESTS

KAZAKHSTAN, the landlocked central Asian country larger than the whole of Western Europe, grabbed the attention of the world's biggest oil companies in 2000 with the discovery of the giant Kashagan oi... read more..

Pricey real estate deals in Dubai raise questions about Azerbaijan's president Azerbaijan's leaders face no danger because the judiciary, anti-corruption bodies and most of the country's media outlets are firmly under their control

06 Mar

Events and opinions

2579

Pricey real estate deals in Dubai raise questions about Azerbaijan's president Azerbaijan's leaders face no danger because the judiciary, anti-corruption bodies and most of the country's media outlets are firmly under their control

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES -- Even by the standards of a city that celebrates extravagance, it was a spectacular shopping spree: In just two weeks early last year, an 11-year-old boy from Azerbaijan ... read more..

05 Mar

Events and opinions

3249

Former Kazatomprom head accused of money laundering

Kazakh authorities accused former Kazatomprom Mukhtar Dzhakishev of money laundering, amid ongoing investigation into his role in alleged theft and illegal sales of uranium assets to foreign companies... read more..

04 Mar

Economy

3775

Kazakh Companies Wary of Import Costs, Russian Rivals

Kazakh companies are concerned about soaring import costs and stiffer competition from Russian rivals since the Central Asian country joined a customs union with Russia and Belarus on Jan. 1, a busine... read more..

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