Author: Sean Mcgee

Paris, Brussels (13/7 – 37.5) In Kazakhstan, Ablyazov was sentenced in absentia to life in prison for murder, another sentence related to the creation of a criminal community, embezzlement and money laundering. In Russia, the ex-banker was sentenced to 15 years for embezzlement of almost 60 billion rubles.The French authorities demanded that the former head of the Kazakh BTA Bank, Mukhtar Ablyazov, leave the country within 30 days. He announced this on his Facebook page (owned by Meta, whose activities in Russia are recognized as extremist and banned). Ablyazov’s extradition is simultaneously sought by Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine. The former…

The Kyrgyzstan Schoolboys & Schoolgirls National Championships will be the country’s next highlight in the boxing schedule. The country earned its first ever bronze medal in the Men’s Elite World Boxing Championships and their boxers in all age groups are ready to show their skills in the upcoming events. The date of the next Kyrgyzstan Schoolboys & Schoolgirls National Championships is June 23-27 and the capital city, Bishkek will be the host of the competition. Boxers who were born in 2009 or in 2010, will be eligible to participate in the Kyrgyzstan Schoolboys & Schoolgirls National Championships. Some of the…

Russia has suspended the import of dairy products from Kyrgyzstan after the chairman of Kyrgyzstan’s National Commission for the State Language and Language Policies, Kanybek Osmonaliev, said his country is ready to start working on switching the Kyrgyz language from Cyrillic to a Latin-based alphabet. Russia’s agriculture products watchdog, Rosselkhoznadzor, said in a statement on April 21 that the move was made following the inspection of Kyrgyz dairy products and milk farms last week, which revealed an “inefficiency” in control by Kyrgyz dairy companies over product quality. No specific issues were mentioned. Russia has for years used Rosselkhoznadzor as a blunt foreign…

After the rise in tensions over Iran’s water rights from the Helmand River in recent days, Tehran has now said that Taliban-ruled Afghanistan should clarify the issue of Iran’s water rights within a month. According to a report by Tolo News on Saturday (May 20), Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran’s ambassador to Afghanistan, told Iranian media that if the Taliban want Kabul to move towards peace and stability, it should have constructive interaction with its neighbours.  “If there was water and the Taliban did not provide it to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, then it is clear how it should…

Governments and institutions around the world are working around the clock to fight COVID-19. Some individuals, first of all, entrepreneurs, make their input too. Kenes Rakishev and Saby Fund spent more than 40 million USD to help his country and its people to keep COVID-19 numbers low. As soon as COVID-19 struck Kazakhstan or even somewhat earlier responsible local businessmen started to brace for impact. Those who participated in charity begun to accumulate funds and develop programmes to help Kazakhstani people drive through the pandemic. Kenes Rakishev supported people with the help of Saby fund. He also aided at least two other…

Tajikistan later accused its neighbor of seeking to “escalate” the situation near the border. Clashes regularly erupt between the two former Soviet republics, as around half of their 970-kilometer (600-mile) border has been contested since the end of the Soviet Union. Fighting last month in the southern Kyrgyz region of Batken, bordering Tajikistan, left around a hundred dead according to authorities from both sides. Both Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan are members of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a regional military alliance. Kyrgyz Defense Minister Baktybek Bekbolotov said Wednesday that he recently met with CSTO Secretary-General Stanislav Zas and “told…

(9/3 – 125) Kazakhstan is gearing up for snap elections of the lower house of parliament on March 19, and there is a sense of anticipation in the air. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who came to power in 2019, called for snap elections in the wake of the deadly street protests in January 2022. The elections are part of the president’s ambitious reform agenda, Jana Kazakhstan (New Kazakhstan), which aims to usher in a new era of political liberalization. The parliamentary elections are stage two of Tokayev’s program, following his re-election winning 80 percent of the votes last November. The coming…

Ten cases of bacterial meningitis were registered in Kyrgyzstan in 2023, the Ministry of Health reported. Only cases of bacterial meningitis were registered in 2022. Among 10 cases registered this year, 7 cases were registered in Bishkek, 2 in Chui region, and 1 Osh region. 7 cases were registered among children under 14 years, the rest cases are among those above 14 years. Source: AKI Press