Articles by Staff report

Economic Growth in Central Asia Gains Momentum Amidst Increasing International Partnerships

ASTANA – Central Asian countries demonstrate economic growth despite ongoing global geopolitical turbulence, increasing the attention to the region and enhancing partnerships with other countries. This development is expected to bring significant benefits to the Central Asian countries as a whole, particularly Kazakhstan, reported Kazinform news agency. For Central Asia, 2022 was packed with high-level…

Kazakhstan Prolongs Oil Output Cuts Until 2024

ASTANA – Kazakhstan has reaffirmed its commitment to the agreement on oil output cuts by 78,000 barrels per day till the end of 2024 following the latest agreement reached by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). This was announced at the 49th meeting of the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) on Aug. 4, reported…

Kazakh PM Instructs Astana Administration to Secure Funding of Key Projects

ASTANA – Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov called on the capital’s administration to address the financing of Astana’s priority projects during the budget preparation at a government meeting on Aug. 7, reported the Prime Minister’s press service. Smailov set a task to develop and submit to the government the Comprehensive Development Plan of the city’s…

Kazakh, Cambridge Archaeological Expedition Finds Burial Mound

ASTANA – Joint archaeological expedition of the Al-Farabi Kazakh National University (KazNU) and Cambridge University specialists found a woman’s burial mound during excavations near the Ainabulak village in the Zaisan district of the East Kazakhstan Region, the Kazakh Ministry of Science and Higher Education reported on Aug. 2. Next to the mound, the archaeologists found…

Kazakhstan’s Vinokurov Wins Gold at UCI Gran Fondo World Championship in UK

ASTANA – General Manager of Astana Qazaqstan Team and Olympic cycling medalist Alexandr Vinokurov won the gold medal at the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Gran Fondo World Championships in the 50-54 age category Glasgow, Scotland, reported the team’s press service on Aug. 5.  Vinokurov completed the distance of 159 km in four hours five minutes…

Kazakh Foreign Ministry Reveals Winners of Foreign Media Contest

ASTANA – The Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced the eight winners of the Kazakhstan Through the Eyes of Foreign Media contest, reported the ministry’s press service on Aug. 4. Journalists and bloggers from five continents presented their articles and content on Kazakhstan, published in newspapers, on popular online platforms, blogs, and podcasts, covering…

Kazakhstan’s FlyArystan Lowcoster Introduces Check-In Fee for International Flights

ASTANA – FlyArystan, Kazakhstan’s low-cost airline, has introduced check-in fees at airports for international flights from Aug. 3, following the announcement they made on July 3. Online check-in remains free. According to the statement, the carrier charges 5,000 tenge ($11.20) for the check-in service for international flights bought in advance on the app or on…

First China-Central Asia Freight Train Leaves Guiyang to Almaty

ASTANA – A cargo train left Dulaying International land-sea logistics port in Guiyang, southwest China’s Guizhou Province, on July 28 to Almaty, marking the launch of the first direct China-Central Asia rail-road intermodal freight train service from Guiyang, reported Xinhua. A train loaded with more than 1,500 tons of goods, including mattresses, children’s products, and…

Kazakhstan to Start Five Weekly Flights to Azerbaijan

ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s flagship carrier Air Astana signed a codeshare agreement with AZAL Azerbaijan Airlines, as per which the two airlines will operate joint flights on the Baku-Almaty-Baku route five times a week, Air Astana’s press service reported on July 31. Codeshare agreements offer Kazakh passengers more travel destinations, flexibility, convenience, and high-quality services. By…

Kazakhstan’s CICA Chairmanship Brings Progress in Enhancing Connectivity in Asia

ASTANA – Kazakh Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Kanat Tumysh and Secretary General of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) Kairat Sarybay signed a Roadmap for the Implementation of the Kazakh Chairmanship’s Priorities in CICA for 2023-2024 on July 28, outlining progress in implementing activities to strengthen connectivity in Asia,…

Foreign Tourist Arrivals Triple in Kazakhstan 

ASTANA – The hotels in Kazakhstan welcomed nearly 250,000 foreign nationals from June 1 to July 23, which is over three times more than in the same period last year, the Ministry of Culture and Sports reported on July 27.  According to the eQonaq information system for registering international visitors, 77,645 foreign tourists stayed in…

Kazakhstan Advocates Uniting International Efforts to Assist Afghanistan

ASTANA – Kazakhstan is advocating to combine international efforts to assist Afghanistan and address the country’s complex humanitarian crisis, said Kazakh First Deputy Foreign Minister Kairat Umarov at a meeting with United States Special Representative for Afghanistan, Thomas West, reported the ministry’s press service. West arrived in Astana to attend the C5+1 special session on…

Kazakhstan, Qatar Expand Number of Flights Between Cities

ASTANA – Kazakhstan and Qatar have signed a memorandum to expand the number of flights from seven to 14 a week on the routes Astana-Doha and Almaty-Doha, following talks on July 27-28, reported the Kazakh Civil Aviation Committee. The total frequency has been increased from 21 to 38 flights per week, with a rise in…

Kazakhstan Receives Formal Invitation to Paris Olympics 2024

ASTANA – The International Olympic Committee (IOC) invited Kazakhstan’s National Olympic Committee (NOC) to participate in the 33rd Summer Olympic Games 2024 in Paris, Sports.kz reported on July 28. Two hundred and three out of 206 NOCs received an invitation from the IOC, except from Russia and Belarus. Guatemala has been officially suspended from the…

US Students Learn Kazakh Culture Through Abai’s Works

ASTANA – The Jibek Joly TV channel published news about U.S. students who visited Astana to explore the Kazakh language, culture and traditions in July. Mason Maltby, a student at the University of Arizona, once read works written by prominent Kazakh poet Abai and has had keen interest in Kazakhstan since then. He now dreams…

Kazakh Government Signs Investment Contracts Worth $4.9 Billion in 18 Years

ASTANA – The Kazakh Investment Committee signed 1,438 investment contracts worth 2.2 trillion tenge ($4.9 billion) between 2005 and June this year, including 216 with the provision of a land grant in-kind, said Deputy Foreign Minister Almas Aidarov, reported the Prime Minister’s press service. Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov chaired a July 27 meeting of…

Renowned Kazakh, Foreign Musicians to Perform at Alem Saz Music Festival This Fall

ASTANA – The Alem Saz International Music Festival, which will take place on Sept. 27- Oct. 3 in Astana, will bring together musicians from eight countries, reported the Kazakhconcert press service. Artists from Germany, Hungary, Japan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Russia, Spain, and Türkiye will perform at the event. Each festival day will be devoted to one…

Kazakh Athletes Win Ten Medals at ISSF World Shooting Championship

ASTANA – Kazakh athletes secured four gold, four silver, and two bronze medals at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Shooting Championship Juniors held from July 14 to 25 in Changwon, South Korea, reported the Culture and Sports Ministry’s press service. Kazakhstan took fourth place with twelve shooters competing with over 600 athletes from…

National Museum of Kazakhstan Sees Record-Breaking Visitor Numbers Since Start of 2023

ASTANA – Some 310,000 people have visited the National Museum of Kazakhstan since the beginning of this year, a record number considering 330,000 visitors recorded for the entire 2022, said the museum’s Acting Director Aibek Sydykov, the Culture and Sports Ministry’s press service reported on July 21. “This indicates an increased interest in our people’s…

CPC to Increase Oil Pumping Volume Up to 81.5 Million Tons Yearly

ASTANA – The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) is set to increase the volume of oil pumping up to 81.5 million tons per year within the CPC Debottlenecking Program (DBNP), the CPC’s press service reported on July 25. The statement came after a ceremony marking the completion of a new Oil Quantity and Quality Measuring System…

Kazakh Government Approves Action Plan to Combat Shadow Economy

ASTANA – Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov signed a decree on approval of the comprehensive action plan to combat the shadow economy for 2023-2025, the Prime Minister’s press service reported on July 26. By 2025, Kazakhstan plans to reduce the shadow turnover in wholesale and retail trade to 5%, which stood at 6.7% last year. The…

Turkic World Media Platform Opens Office in Baku

ASTANA – Turkic World, the first joint media platform of the Turkic countries, has opened its office in Baku on July 24, reported the Turkic World. In his introductory remarks, Rufiz Hafizoglu, the deputy director of Trend News Agency, said the agency and the Turkish Albayrak Media Group decided to establish a collaborative media platform in…

Kazakhstan’s New Vehicle Sales See 60% Growth in January-June

ASTANA – The Kazakh car industry witnessed a 60.2% increase in new car sales in the first half of the year, reported the Association of Kazakhstan Auto Business on July 17. Customers purchased 83,235 new cars in January-June. Chevrolet Cobalt (14,851 cars), Hyundai Tucson (6,868 cars) and Kia Sportage (5,398 cars) have been the most…

CICA Flag Raised at 4,317 Meters Above Sea Level

ASTANA — Kazakh and foreign activists set a flag of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) on July 23 at the Kanysh Satpayev Peak, located near Almaty at an altitude of 4,317 meters above sea level, reported the organization’s press service.  The event, which celebrated CICA efforts over the past…

Azerbaijan Hosts Shusha Global Media Forum

ASTANA – The Azerbaijani city of Shusha hosted the Global Media Forum under the theme New Media in the Era of the 4th Industrial Revolution from July 21 to 23, reported Kazinform. The event brought together more than 200 participants, including state representatives, media and public structures, business communities, international organizations, scientists, and experts. The…