Stories about Kazakhstan from December, 2007
Kazakhstan: President Eyes Oilfield Dispute's Resolution
Steve LeVine opines that Kazakhstan's president Nazarbayev seems to have signaled an end to the Kashagan dispute by calling together the oil companies for a meeting with him next month.
Kazakhstan: Faster Internet
Arseny reports on the prospected new requirements for ISPs in Kazakhstan and opines on the possible changes in their tariffs.
Kazakhstan: Dualities in Kashagan Oilfield Dispute
Bboyd reacts on the new article by John Daly about duality of Caspian oil negotiations, currently focused on the Kazakhstan's supergiant Kashagan oilfield.
Kazakhstan: Dangerous Places
Marat posts some analysis on where it is more dangerous to live in our country in the cities or in the rural areas of Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan: Crisis Has Gone?
Arseny provides excepts from the interview to Bloomberg, given by Kazakhstan’s top banker, saying the country has got rid of the crisis.
Kazakhstan: Debates over Latinization of Kazakh Language
Kazakhstan intends to switch the state language to the Latin script. It was announced that the transition will take 12-15 years. As adam_kesher writes, the plan stirred many disputes and arguments – in particular, Russia and a part of Kazakhstan’s Russian-speaking population considers switching to Latin is an adverse move...
Kazakhstan: Almaty travelogue
The Schirm Project posts a travelogue entry on his trip to Almaty, the commercial capital of Kazakhstan, saying it can be compared to a cross between Reno, Washington DC, and Boston.
Kazakhstan: A Possible Kashagan Settlement
Steve LeVine reports that there are signs that the Italian-led partners developing the suspended supergiant Kashagan oilfield are near a settlement with Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan: Construction Crisis Gains Sharper Traits
Zhanna Zhukova reports on recent developments surrounding one of the major construction companies of Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan: Kazakh-Language Blogosphere's Hot Topics
Askhat reviews the most commented posts in the Kazakh-language blogosphere on the example of the Kazakh-language blog of neweurasia.
Kazakhstan: Artpologist Project Presentation
Daniel reports on the presentation of an artistic project, completed by him and a number of Kazakhstani artists, called “Transformation of Space in Almaty”.
Kazakhstan: New Pipeline, a Putin's Victory
Steve LeVine reports that Vladimir Putin won another round in the European pipeline war, as Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan signed a final agreement agreeing to build a new natural gas pipeline to Europe. Meanwhile Washington is bickering over who will lead American policy on the issue.
Kazakhstan: Blogosphere’s Self-Reflection
Recently, the Kazakhstani blogosphere has suddenly become interested in what the blogs really are and what sort of impact they have. Bloggers produced series of posts on this topic approximately at the same time. It is difficult to say for sure what was the reason for such wave of self-reflection...
Kazakhstan: 2007 – Filthy Politics and Grapes of Wrath
The passing year was rich in shaking news and political scandals in Kazakhstan, all of which have been finding reflection in the blogosphere’s reactions and online debates. Many of those events will find their place in the history textbooks of the future, and life may never remain the same after...
Kazakhstan: The country's strike-back
Ben reviews the developments in Kazakhstan in 2007, focusing on the energy issues and Kazakh government's rising resource nationalism.
Kazakhstan: What is Ak-Orda?
Arseny posts a funny story that vividly indicates how many people living in Astana’s Old Town – a Soviet provincial cityscape – sometimes do not have any idea of what is happening on the Left Bank, where the Shining New Capital of Kazakhstan is rapidly growing.
Kazakhstan: Zebra Mussels Invade U.S.
Steve LeVine says that communities around the U.S. are in a panic over the creeping invasion of a native Caspian Sea mollusk called the Zebra Mussel, which had been first described in the eighteenth century by a visitor to the mouth of the Ural River in the northeastern Caspian near...
Kazakhstan: Offshore Islands as Best Investors and Importers
Marat reviews statistics on the investments in Kazakhstan and exports from Kazakhstan – and in both cases the offshore paradises occupy a significant space.
Kazakhstan: Trial over President's Ex-Adviser Postponed Again
Steve LeVine reports that a U.S. court today pushed the foreign bribery case of James Giffen, former energy adviser to the Kazakhstan's leadership, into its fifth year. Giffen is accused of bribing the foreign officials, money laundering, wire fraud and tax evasion.
Kazakhstan: Nabucco Pipeline Lacks Commitments
Steve LeVine notes that this week's Washington appearance of Valekh Aleskerov, Azerbaijan's former chief oil negotiator, highlighted the absence thus far of concrete commitments by Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to a prospective Trans-Caspian gas pipeline.
Kazakhstan: “Happy” Childhood
Revavle posts a set of pictures, capturing the children playing on the devastated area behind the glossy new apartment houses in the downtown of Almaty.
