Monthly Archive

2019

Welcome to our Archives page. On this page you will find a total of 148 of our articles broken down into Months and Years.
Feature: Caspian oil producers face growing investor skepticism
Economy
1548

Feature: Caspian oil producers face growing investor skepticism

Three decades after gaining independence, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan face a growing struggle convincing investors and markets of the potential for significant new oil opportunities in the Caspian reg read more..
Kazakhstan: Tested by Transition
Events and opinions
2350

Kazakhstan: Tested by Transition

A partial handover of political power through an orchestrated transition takes Kazakhstan into uncharted territory. Will it be able to pursue modernization and reform, and break from its authoritari read more..
Tajikistan’s massive Rogun hydropower dam: a blessing or a curse?
Economy
1537

Tajikistan’s massive Rogun hydropower dam: a blessing or a curse?

Tajikistan spent all the proceeds from its first ever eurobond on the giant Rogun hydropower dam. It is still consuming a quarter of the budget each year. Tajikistan, Central Asia's poorest natio read more..
Central Asia’s electricity network – underpowered and fragmented
Economy
1456

Central Asia’s electricity network – underpowered and fragmented

Central Asia needs more 500kV loops in order to share power between the countries of the region. Central Asia’s power grid, set up by the Soviets in the 1980s, was conceived as a centralised netw read more..
BTA Bank AO : announces launch of criminal case against Ilyas Khrapunov
Corruption!
5342

BTA Bank AO : announces launch of criminal case against Ilyas Khrapunov

The Prosecutor's Office in Geneva is conducting a criminal case against Ilyas Khrapunov, son-in-law of BTA Bank's former owner. Khrapunov is suspected of laundering money stolen from BTA Bank.  read more..
Now FIVE big names cut ties with Prince Andrew:
Extra
1397

Now FIVE big names cut ties with Prince Andrew:

Advertising Week Europe joins Standard Chartered in pulling backing for royal's main charity following 'car crash' interview - as FOUR universities consider ditching him Five multi-million pound read more..
As the Eurasian Union looks east, its deals do not benefit all members equally The EAEU is shopping for partners in Asia. Middle finger to the West or sound trade policy?
Economy
1308

As the Eurasian Union looks east, its deals do not benefit all members equally The EAEU is shopping for partners in Asia. Middle finger to the West or sound trade policy?

 The EAEU is shopping for partners in Asia. Middle finger to the West or sound trade policy? The Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union has been on an expansion spree this year, signing a free read more..
Kazakhstan: Exiled regime nemesis splits sputtering opposition
Political process
1662

Kazakhstan: Exiled regime nemesis splits sputtering opposition

The squabbling is good news for a regime that relentlessly tries to divide and conquer the opposition.  Mukhtar Ablyazov, the most avowed foe of Kazakhstan’s government, is no team player. read more..
Kazakhstan: The mothers that became the faces of dissent
Events and opinions
1655

Kazakhstan: The mothers that became the faces of dissent

Government critics argue that the ruling has transformed the protestors, three of whom are mothers of young children, into political martyrs.  Oksana Shevchuk was still breastfeeding when sh read more..
Belgium’s second Kazakhgate unfolds
Corruption!
4241

Belgium’s second Kazakhgate unfolds

Belgium again finds itself amidst a scandal that threatens to become “Kazakhgate-II”.  With the Le Soir publication “Belgium extends a helping hand to the Kazakh police”, the former managing read more..
Prince Andrew out in the cold: KPMG pulls £100,000-a-year sponsorship of Duke's Dragons' Den-style start up scheme as other leading business including Aon and AstraZeneca also review relationship
Extra
1218

Prince Andrew out in the cold: KPMG pulls £100,000-a-year sponsorship of Duke's Dragons' Den-style start up scheme as other leading business including Aon and AstraZeneca also review relationship

Leading businesses and charities are deserting Prince Andrew over the Epstein scandal as the future of his main charitable project he repeatedly mentioned in his BBC car crash interview is in jeopar read more..
Sinophobia simmers across Central Asia
Events and opinions
1484

Sinophobia simmers across Central Asia

It is just a tiny grocery store in a decrepit, Khruschev-era five-story apartment block in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan – but it is flooded with shoppers, 24 hours a day. Located just off t read more..
Growth of popular unrest in Kazakhstan ‘met by throttling of internet freedom'
Economy
1269

Growth of popular unrest in Kazakhstan ‘met by throttling of internet freedom'

One of the more remarkable occurrences in Central Asian politics this year was the sight of thousands of Kazakhs taking to the streets to protest at the shoo-in, far from democratic election of long read more..
Event | Africa’s experience with Chinese investors. Some parallels with Central Asia
Events and opinions
1311

Event | Africa’s experience with Chinese investors. Some parallels with Central Asia

Beijing needed testing grounds for risky investments. Poorly governed, resource-rich countries with exploding populations that are hungry for investment: Africa and Central Asia have much in comm read more..
Kazakhstan: Confidence low in government trust-building exercise
Extra
1374

Kazakhstan: Confidence low in government trust-building exercise

Over the past two decades, the president’s office has instituted at least six ad hoc commissions to defuse some kind of political impasse. The latest is not off to an auspicious start. When it be read more..
Kazakhstan: UN Review Should Press for Reforms
Political process
1974

Kazakhstan: UN Review Should Press for Reforms

Allow Protests; Stop Persecuting Critics Governments should use an upcoming review of Kazakhstan’s rights record at the United Nations (UN) to hold the country’s new president to his pl read more..
China ready to promote ties with Kazakhstan to new level: Premier Li
Events and opinions
1626

China ready to promote ties with Kazakhstan to new level: Premier Li

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Saturday that China stands ready to promote China-Kazakhstan relations to a new level. Li made the remarks during his meeting with Kazakh Prime Minister Askar M read more..
Kazakhstan Remains Nazarbayev’s State
Political process
2535

Kazakhstan Remains Nazarbayev’s State

If it walks like a president, talks like a president, and has powers on par with a president… On October 8, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev criticized the development and design of Nur-Sul read more..
Tribunal Grants WWM US$50M for Claims Against Kazakhstan Under Soviet Treaty
Extra
3949

Tribunal Grants WWM US$50M for Claims Against Kazakhstan Under Soviet Treaty

World Wide Minerals Ltd. ("WWM") and Mr. Paul A. Carroll, QC, WWM's President and CEO, have been vindicated in an arbitral award, which held that the Republic of Kazakhstan breached international la read more..
Masked 'Umbrella Men' Strike Kazakh Journalists Again
Political process
3278

Masked 'Umbrella Men' Strike Kazakh Journalists Again

Pensioner Ernazar Perneev had just arrived at Nauryz Square in Kazakhstan's southern city of Shymkent on October 26 when he was confronted by a representative from the mayor's office. You know, i read more..
Who really is Kazakhstan’s leader of the nation?
Political process
1275

Who really is Kazakhstan’s leader of the nation?

The consensus among Kazakhstan watchers is that the former president is trying to contain his successor.  In an interview earlier this month, Kazakhstan’s former President Nursultan Nazarbay read more..
Kazakh Ex-President Rejects Talk Of Shared Power, Blames 'Traitors' For Unrest
Political process
3639

Kazakh Ex-President Rejects Talk Of Shared Power, Blames 'Traitors' For Unrest

Former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev used an extended interview on state television on October 11 to downplay his continuing influence and defer to his successor, condemn "traitors" abroad fo read more..
Inside the decaying mansions abandoned in UK’s most expensive wasteland
Extra
3366

Inside the decaying mansions abandoned in UK’s most expensive wasteland

New footage has emerged from the decaying multi-million pound London mansions left derelict in ‘one of the most expensive wastelands in the world’.  Billionaires’ Row, officially named The B read more..
Kazakh president orders investigation into China-linked transport project
Economy
2691

Kazakh president orders investigation into China-linked transport project

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Tuesday ordered an investigation into former senior officials who initiated a struggling $1.5 billion Chinese-led project to build a light rail network in t read more..
Kazakhstan believes in protests, sort of
Political process
1256

Kazakhstan believes in protests, sort of

An independent polling agency in Kazakhstan has found in a nationwide survey that 43 percent of respondents view demonstrations as a force for good. Only a relatively small portion of respondents read more..
COUNTRY of coups and dashed hopes
Corruption!
1771

COUNTRY of coups and dashed hopes

Despite democratic donor countries generous support Kyrgyz elites continue to roll back towards authoritarianism and kleptocracy. Twice these processes resulted in mass riots, with Kyrgyzstan’s two read more..
HRW Submission to the Universal Periodic Review of Kazakhstan
Extra
1167

HRW Submission to the Universal Periodic Review of Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan’s poor human rights record has regretably deterioriated since its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in October 2014. Authorities cracked down on peaceful protests critical of government read more..
Should Europe fear Russia’s Eurasian Economic Union?
Events and opinions
1877

Should Europe fear Russia’s Eurasian Economic Union?

The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) is a Russian-run structure, loosely modelled on the European Union. The guests of honour at the recent summit in Yerevan, capital of Armenia, were leaders from read more..
Mass Arrests Cast Doubt on Rights Reform in Kazakhstan
Political process
1235

Mass Arrests Cast Doubt on Rights Reform in Kazakhstan

Since coming to power in June, Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokaev has claimed a desire to accelerate political reforms and improve human rights in the country.  But t read more..
Is China’s Belt And Road Initiative Strategic Genius, Arrogant Overreach Or Something Else?
Economy
1290

Is China’s Belt And Road Initiative Strategic Genius, Arrogant Overreach Or Something Else?

The Belt and Road Initiative is China’s bold and risky response to internal tensions and external pressure, but it is not backed by an inspiring idea. President Xi Jinping, the modern-day emperor read more..
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