Kazakhstan

by Vladimir Rozanskij | KAZAKHSTAN

Kazakhstan will sign an agreement with Moscow by the end of the year for the construction of its first nuclear power plant, but it already has plans for a second one to be built together with the Chiona National Nuclear Corporation, which could be completed more quickly. And Tokaert is also leaving the door open to Western consortia for a third plant.

Central Asia and Beijing after the Astana summit

by Vladimir Rozanskij | CENTRAL ASIA - CHINA

New street names in Petropavlovsk

by Vladimir Rozanskij | KAZAKHSTAN

Kazakh reforms and relations with Beijing

by Vladimir Rozanskij | KAZAKHSTAN - CHINA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

The breakdown in relations with Europe was portrayed by Russian propaganda as a bright new horizon for the Eurasian space. But sanctions have enabled Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to grow in their role as intermediaries in trade with third countries. And today, many migrants are looking more to the West than to Moscow.

 

| 15/05/2025
| RUSSIA - CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

The region holds vast reserves of these minerals, now highly sought after by the high-tech industry. Kazakhstan speaks of “unparalleled deposits”. The European Union is working to foster suitable partnerships as a possible alternative to China for supplies. However, these efforts are hindered by underdeveloped technological infrastructure, which slows down the region’s real prospects for growth.

| 14/05/2025
| CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

Since the collapse of the USSR, the five former Soviet republics of Central Asia have been debating whether to abandon the Cyrillic alphabet in favour of Latin script. Some argue it more closely reflects the phonetics of Turkic languages, but the issue is entangled with broader calls for “de-Russification” in the context of the war in Ukraine. Even in Kazakhstan—where Nazarbayev launched the transition with the aim of completing it by 2031—serious doubts remain.

| 08/05/2025
| CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

After much hesitation and meetings at the level of individual countries, now in Samarkand the European Union has openly declared its intention to ‘raise relations to the level of strategic partnership’ with the region as a whole. But local leaders, who aim to ‘diversify’ their foreign policy, are waiting to see how many resources Brussels will really put on the table.

| 07/04/2025
| CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

The Eurasian military alliance has presented new guidelines for law enforcement operations to be applied in all member states to prevent ‘terrorist infiltration’. Last year 420 illegal organisations were identified, but there were also many summary actions against Tajiks after the attack on Krokus City Hall. Dushanbe is insisting that its citizens fully legalise their residence status in Russia by the end of April.

| 31/03/2025
| CENTRAL ASIA
by Vladimir Rozanskij

Moscow and Astana have formed a joint working group for the ‘custody of historical memory’. The Russians are pointing the finger at the way the imperial policy of the tsars and the Soviet Union is presented in history books. While the Kazakhs remember well the words of Putin who in 2014 declared that their country ‘never had its own statehood’.

| 19/03/2025
| RUSSIA - KAZAKISTAN
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“L’Asia: ecco il nostro comune compito per il terzo millennio!” - Giovanni Paolo II, da “Alzatevi, andiamo”