Kazakhstan

President Tokayev secured the endorsement he sought with the usual “Soviet-style” vote margins. He now faces the challenge of truly making Astana a model for the region, with a political system capable of balancing the strength of the state with popular consent. The first test will be the parliamentary elections scheduled for this summer.

Burdened by debt following privatisation, the Uzbek company is undergoing a tough restructuring programme aimed at simultaneously increasing production and reducing costs. A warning from a Kazakh industry operator: without transparency and prudent use of resources, others risk suffering the same fate.

The conflict in the Middle East also involves the former Soviet republics, which historically have close ties with Tehran. Strong emotions in Baku over the killing of Khamenei, who was of Azerbaijani origin. Azerbaijan, which also has relations with Israel, is a crossroads for the evacuation of foreign citizens from Iran. From Kazakhstan, Tokaev aligns himself with the Arab countries but calls for a “peaceful solution”.

According to the latest census in Kazakhstan, there are almost 424,000 mothers living alone with minor children. In Astana, a businesswoman has started a volunteer organisation that helps those who give birth without anyone by their side. Her idea has now been replicated in Uzbekistan.

Never before have the Americans tried so hard to show Central Asians how mutual cooperation can compensate for the inevitable irritation of Russia and China. The approach of the current Trump administration is to put ideological issues aside and focus on economic advantages, finding much greater harmony with the historical “satraps” of the region.

Speaking at the fifth national assembly in Kyzylorda, the president presented the fundamental parameters of constitutional changes to free the country from the clans that have dominated it for over thirty years. He insisted on the need to prioritise administrative discipline, with technological acceleration at its service.

A figure completely unknown to the general public, the young builder Shakhmurat Mutalip, has put himself forward as a buyer for several billion dollars of Kazakhstan's leading mining company, the latest step in his meteoric rise in Astana. The suspicion is that he has inherited the legacy of the power groups that prospered in Tokaev's shadow.

According to Dugin and Soloviev, the former Soviet republics ‘have no right to independence’ and must reunite with Russia to avoid becoming slaves to China, America or Europe. Local governments have issued only feeble protests, invoking the ‘spirit of strategic partnership’. The suspicion that the two propagandists are saying ‘what the Russian leadership does not want to express openly, but which in reality corresponds to its plans’

The Vietnamese leader pledged support for joint efforts to bring peace to Gaza. He promised to work closely with his country’s former enemy in various areas in line with both sides' needs and priorities. Among Central Asian countries, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have joined the new body.

The cellulose that remains after cotton ginning is a component used in the production of gunpowder. And from 2022 to today, Uzbekistan, one of the largest producers in the region and in the world, has massively increased its exports to Moscow precisely because of the conflict in Ukraine.

With falling oil prices, double-digit inflation and a weak national currency, the World Bank predicts that growth in 2026 will not exceed 4.5%. And there is controversy in the country over the VAT increase, which could lead to a general decline in the standard of living of the Kazakh population.

The accounts of Mirziyoyev's daughters offer a glimpse into the private lives of their families, demonstrating the leaders' closeness to the people, an important element of today's “political technology”. The counter-current case of Nazarbayev's grandson who - having fallen into disgrace due to drug addiction - accused all his relatives of being “greedy and insatiable”.