Kazakhstan

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev delivers a speech during a festival in Almaty on March 21.
Politics

Kazakhstan reforms meet skepticism in shadow of Russia's war

Amid 'cosmetic' changes, critics say Tokayev missing chance to break Kremlin's grip

30 March 2022
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Russia's Vladimir Putin meet in Moscow on Feb. 10, two weeks before the invasion of Ukraine. 
International relations

Ukraine war casts Kazakhstan's reliance on Russia in harsher light

Tokayev struggles to avoid angering 'unpredictable' ally -- and his own people

6 March 2022
The delayed TAPI gas pipeline promises to link Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan and India, but security risks threaten this and other regional connectivity projects.
International relations

India's first Central Asia summit to focus on Afghan risks, trade

Shared security challenges loom over Thursday's talks and port, pipeline hopes

26 January 2022
A damaged portrait of former Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev is seen at the city hall in Almaty on Jan. 10, after the country's largest city was rocked by protests.
Politics

Kazakhstan drive to close book on Nazarbayev era gathers pace

President Tokayev sidelines predecessor but true reform remains elusive

23 January 2022
Russian soldiers fold the national flag during a ceremony marking the beginning of the CSTO withdrawal from Kazakhstan in Almaty on Jan. 13.
International relations

Russian-led CSTO's Kazakhstan mission leaves lingering bootprints

Analysts see short deployment putting Moscow's security stamp on Central Asia

15 January 2022
Stream article image
Podcast

Asia Stream: Deconstructing the Kazakhstan Crisis

From mob violence to military intervention, we investigate the unrest in the Central Asian state

14 January 2022
Collective Security Treaty Organization peacekeepers guard an area in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Jan. 11. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
12 January 2022
A man sits on the steps of a building in Almaty on Jan. 9 as a vehicle, which was burnt during mass protests triggered by rising fuel prices, is seen in the foreground. 
Politics

Kazakhstan says has so far detained nearly 8,000 over unrest

Authorities blame violence on 'extremists' and 'terrorists'

10 January 2022
Russian servicemen board a military aircraft heading to Kazakhstan, at an airfield outside Moscow on Jan. 6.
Politics

Kazakhstan unrest rattles region as Russia steps in: What to know

CSTO intervention raises U.S. eyebrows; China calls turmoil 'domestic affairs'

7 January 2022
A police car burns during a protest against rising fuel costs following the Kazakh authorities' decision to lift price caps on liquefied petroleum gas in Almaty on Jan. 5.
Politics

Kazakhstan: Shots heard as troops, protesters clash in Almaty

Internet down; Central bank decides to suspend all financial institutions

6 January 2022
Although the U.S. Federal Reserve is starting to tighten its grip on credit, other central banks continue their shift to gold, reflecting global concerns about the dollar-based monetary regime.
Datawatch

Central banks accelerate shift from dollar to gold worldwide

More resilient to upcoming rate hikes, holdings rose to a 31-year high in 2021

29 December 2021
A cryptocurrency mining data center in Kazakhstan in November: The national grid operator says the industry's huge appetite for electricity has strained the country's supply.
Cryptocurrencies

Kazakhstan's crypto mining boom fizzles over power supply strain

Miners feel 'scapegoated' for creaky grid, start to shift overseas

28 December 2021
The India-funded Chabahar Port in Iran in early 2019. New Delhi wants the site to become a gateway to trade with Central Asia. (Photo by Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
International relations

Spotlight on trade gateway as India hosts talks with Central Asia

Sunday discussions look set to focus on New Delhi-funded port in Iran

18 December 2021
Nursultan Nazarbayev, right, and Xi Jinping attend a news briefing after signing bilateral documents in Astana in September 2013: Kazakhstan's view on its connections to China is not as rosy as they once were.
Opinion

Ties that bind Kazakhstan to China are starting to unravel

Frustrations with Beijing are becoming increasingly visible

7 December 2021
A cryptocurrency mining company's data center in Kazakhstan on Nov. 6: Such operations have fueled an "abnormal" rise in the country's energy demand.
Cryptocurrencies

Crypto influx from China pushes Kazakhstan toward nuclear power

Energy-rich nation, now the No. 2 currency miner, is suddenly thirsty for juice

24 November 2021
A container terminal of Eurotransit in Altynkol, Kazakhstan. The country's rail transport is benefitting from rising maritime shipping costs and delays. (Photo by Yohei Ishikawa)
Interview

Kazakhstan transit cargo to double in volume by 2025 from 2010

Rail transport gaining from pandemic, online shopping: deputy minister

23 October 2021
Researchers found that the U.S. share of average monthly global hashrate -- the computational power used to mint new bitcoin and process transactions -- grew to 35.4% in August from 16.9% in April.
Cryptocurrencies

U.S. overtakes China in bitcoin mining after Beijing clampdown

Cambridge report shows Kazakhstan, Russia and Malaysia rising in rankings

13 October 2021
Much of China's bitcoin mining capacity has shut down in response to tougher restrictions.
Cryptocurrencies

Cryptocurrency miners flee China as clampdown intensifies

G-20 finance chiefs warn against asset-linked 'stablecoins' without official oversight

13 July 2021
Combines harvest a wheat field in Kazakhstan: The issue of land ownership is extremely sensitive in the country.
Politics

Kazakh ban on foreign farmland sales fails to quell China distrust

Defiant opposition ready for new protests despite getting its way

14 May 2021
Women in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, on July 13: The country continues to insist it is coronavirus-free.
Coronavirus

WHO leaves Turkmenistan in COVID gray zone as neighbors face surge

Central Asian nation says it has no cases but is advised to act like it does

18 July 2020
With exports and domestic consumption crashing, China, the world's second largest economy, could be on course for losses of up to $1.6 trillion this year, according to the ADB. 
Economy

ADB warns coronavirus threatens to chop 10% off global output

Bank says fiscal and monetary responses needed immediately to soften fallout

15 May 2020
Freight train service from Wuhan, the original center of the COVID-19 outbreak, to Duisburg, Germany resumed on March 28.
Transportation

Shippers turn to Belt and Road trains to beat coronavirus shutdowns

With air and sea freight services disrupted, Europe-Asia rail lines shine

10 May 2020
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon: His government has so far avoided the lockdowns seen in other Central Asian states.
Coronavirus

Tajikistan finally confronts virus as Central Asian economies reel

Turkmenistan is now region's last bastion claiming to be coronavirus-free

8 May 2020
A bridge construction site of the Bar-Boljare highway, pictured in June 2018: for Montenegro any concerns were far outweighed by the potential economic benefit of the new road.
Opinion

For developing world, Belt and Road Initiative is best deal around

China's infrastructure offer supports economic growth in Europe, Africa and Asia

6 May 2020
Tourist and school buses are seen at a parking lot near Kwai Chung Container Terminal in Hong Kong, April 1: The novel coronavirus outbreak has devastated the territory's tourism industry.
Economy

Pandemic to cut Asian growth to 2.2%, worst since 1998 crisis: ADB

Thailand, Hong Kong and seven other economies to shrink, China to slow sharply

3 April 2020