· February, 2008

Stories about Kazakhstan from February, 2008

Kazakhstan: Political Parallels

  22 February 2008

Marat posts an interesting view on the Kazakhstani politicians and their clones in the Russian Federation, drawing the parallels by the political nature and status of the personalities.

Kazakhstan: Park in Almaty

  22 February 2008

Kamneed is posting picturesque photos of the central park in Almaty, a city called Southern capital of Kazakhstan. The shots shows us how this small piece of calmness in the heart of noisy city is looking this winter.

Kazakhstan: Clinton's Kazakh Affair Is Spinning

  21 February 2008

Zhanna Zhukova provides an update on the scandal around ex-president of the United States Bill Clinton, his friend Frank Guistra (a Canadian financier & businessman) and Kazakhstan, where Guistra got a lucrative contract in uranium production after a visit to Almaty together with Clinton.

Kazakhstan: State of the Nation

  21 February 2008

The main event in the country’s politics never passes by the bloggers’ attention. This week it was the time of presidential State of the Nation address. All TV stations and state-controlled newspapers provided its aggressively propagandistic coverage, that bloggers were unhappy with [ru]. As megakhuimyak jokes, “our president does not...

Kazakhstan: More State Control in Economy

  18 February 2008

KZBlog reports that one week after the president's Address to the Nation, the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan announced that this year the government will investigate all existing contracts with foreigners in extractive sector to void contracts with companies that have violated the terms.

Central Asia: Which Candidate is Good for the Region?

  14 February 2008

KZBlog ponders on which candidate for the post of the United States president may be better for the development of Central Asia and says that John McCain co-sponsored Freedom Support Act, Barak Obama is widely believed to be more of an internationalist and perceived to have sympathy for Muslim countries.

Kazakhstan: Viva Astana!

  12 February 2008

Adam Kesher reveals the plan of the authorities concerning celebrations and festivities dedicated to the 10-year anniversary of the Kazakhstan’s capital city Astana against the background of economic difficulties experienced by the country.

Kazakhstan: Famed DJ Killed in Almaty

  12 February 2008

Lena B-va reports the shocking story of brutal murder of the Almaty’s popular DJ and one of the most charismatic representatives of clubbing culture of the Kazakhstan’s southern capital.

Kazkahstan: Nostalgia-type Photos

  8 February 2008

Daniel posts pictures by Malik Abyshev, who is using a Soviet made Zenit 35mm film camera to take wonderful photos of the Kazakhstan's largest city of Almaty this winter. His current series resembles a faded memory.

Kazakhstan: Elites Getting Younger and Bleaker

  7 February 2008

Reshuffling of elites and higher officials in Kazakhstan is rarely a consequence of open political debates. Quiet resignations and appointments in the conditions of shady politics provide a fertile soil for commenters and observers to ponder on the reasons that are underneath this or that shuffle. However, there is a...

Kazakhstan: Ethnic Tensions and Underestimated Identity

  7 February 2008

Kazakhstan is a country that often boasts with inter-ethnic and religious tolerance – in tsar epoch it accepted many labor migrants from Ukraine and Russia. In J. Stalin's times it was a destination for deported nations and political prisoners. In late Soviet period thousands of industrial and agricultural professionals came...

Kazakhstan: New head of administration

  6 February 2008

Adam Kesher writes about reshuffling in the state apparatus in Kazakhstan, resulting in the appointment of a young technocrat economist to the powerful position of the head of the presidential administration.