Kazakhstan
Deaths During Caspian Military Drills: Kazakhstan Investigates Commanders’ Actions
Fourteen servicemen in Kazakhstan’s Armed Forces were killed during military exercises on the Caspian Sea on September 24, and five Armed Forces officials were detained. On the same evening, around 100 relatives and Aktau residents gathered outside the city morgue as a serviceman read out the names of the dead. People demanded the chance to identify the bodies, and screams and crying could be heard after some names. September 25 was declared a day of national mourning in Kazakhstan.
The Ministry of Defense later reported that 17 had been swept into the sea; three were rescued, one of whom was hospitalized, and 14 died. A criminal case was opened under provisions covering negligence in the performance of military duties resulting in serious consequences and violations of navigation rules.
The Khazar Qorgany 2026 exercises began on September 22 in Kazakhstan’s sector of the Caspian Sea. More than 500 military personnel took part, along with ships and boats from the Naval Forces, hydrographic vessels, Coast Guard units of the National Security Committee’s Border Service, and Air Defense Forces aircraft.
Relatives of one serviceman said that officials from the akimat, the local executive authority, the police, and the military enlistment office came to the family’s home to tell them their son had died.
Members of other families said that some of the conscripts were about a week away from completing their military service.
Based on the published birth dates of 12 servicemen on the Ministry of Defense’s initial list, they were between 19 and 23 years old; nine were born in 2006 or 2007.
Among those killed was 20-year-old sailor Serzhan Ayapbergen from the Mangystau region. Before joining the military, he competed in sambo and judo, won silver at the Kazakhstan championship and the Commonwealth of Independent States Games in sambo, won judo competitions, and earned the title of Candidate for Master of Sport.
Deaths among military personnel in peacetime have been debated in Kazakhstan for years. In April 2023, First Deputy Chief Military Prosecutor Maksat Kaziyev said that 270 servicemen had died since the beginning of 2020: 78 in 2020, 96 in 2021, 85 in 2022, and another 11 in the first months of 2023.
According to prosecutors, 36% of the deaths were related to illness, 24% to road accidents, and 20% to suicide. Between 2018 and 2022, 86 suicides and 20 attempted suicides were recorded among military personnel.
These figures cover career military personnel, contract soldiers, and conscripts, and include different causes of death. They do not show how many people died specifically while performing military duties.
The deaths of conscripts, young men performing compulsory military service, are particularly sensitive in Kazakhstan.
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Detention of the suspected commander / Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan[/caption]
In November 2025, journalists questioned Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov about deaths among servicemen, hazing in Kazakhstan’s armed forces, and violence in military units. After a reporter said that news of serious incidents appeared almost every month, Kosanov responded with apparent surprise and laughter: “Really? Soldiers? Really?” He demanded specific evidence of violence, called the allegations unfounded, and said there was no dedovshchina in Kazakhstan’s military. In former Soviet countries, the term refers to an informal hierarchy in which longer-serving soldiers abuse junior servicemen.
“Don’t separate the army from society. We are part of the same society,” Kosanov said.
Military Safety Measures
In early 2026, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated that the death of conscripts is “unacceptable” in peacetime.
He criticized the Defense Ministry leadership for insufficient attention to educational and disciplinary work and called for the eradication of hazing, hooliganism, tribalism, and regional favoritism. In a military context, the latter two refer to informal divisions among servicemen based on clan or regional affiliation.
Tokayev added that individual tragedies did not reflect conditions across all military units and that an inspection had found the overall level of discipline to be satisfactory.
Kazakhstan has been changing its military safety system for several years. The interagency “Protect Life” program, launched in 2022, covers suicide, injury, and offense prevention, psychological work with new recruits, and communication with parents.
Programs for 2025–2028 introduced additional training for junior commanders, standardized procedures for recording injuries, and digital monitoring. Military units have expanded video surveillance, while wearable cameras are used during live-fire exercises, training, and combat duty.
Psychological screening has also changed. The PSY-RISK system includes initial screening, an in-depth assessment, and, where necessary, a psychiatric evaluation. During testing, it identified more than 470 young men showing signs of suicidal risk. They were either exempted from service or referred for further examination.
Servicemen can report physical abuse, extortion, and psychological pressure through a digital service and a military police hotline.
In another case involving the death of a soldier in the Ust-Kamenogorsk garrison, investigators found evidence of abuse outside military regulations and psychological pressure against the deceased and six other servicemen. The case against the battalion and platoon commanders was sent to court. The military unit commander and two deputies were removed from their posts, while nine other officials received disciplinary penalties.
Earlier Incidents
Kazakhstan has declared national mourning after earlier mass deaths linked to military service. In 2012, 14 border guards and a gamekeeper were killed at the temporary Arkankergen border post in the mountains near the Chinese border. The post was around 220 kilometers from Usharal. After the group stopped communicating, burned buildings and the victims’ remains were discovered there.
The only surviving border guard was Private Vladislav Chelakh. He was later convicted of murdering 14 fellow servicemen and the gamekeeper and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Naval exercises near Aktau had previously ended in deaths and criminal proceedings. In September 2015, during a marine landing operation, several armored personnel carriers ended up in the water after a strong gust of wind and rough seas. Four conscripts were killed.
Six servicemen were tried in connection with the incident, including the military unit commander, his deputy, and the former commander of the West Regional Command.
The circumstances of the 2015 and 2026 incidents are different, and investigators are still establishing the causes of the latest tragedy.
The public response quickly turned into fundraising for the families. By the morning of September 25, 17 members of Qazaqstan Halyq Kenesi, or the People’s Council of Kazakhstan, said they were prepared to provide 815 million Kazakhstani tenge, around $1.5 million, to the families of those killed. The council is a public association whose members include prominent business figures.
The Mangystau regional authorities established a single channel for collecting donations after receiving approaches from individuals, companies, and organizations. Donations were to be collected through the public association Ulttyq Rukh, while authorities warned people not to transfer money to unknown accounts or personal bank cards.
Rubio to Lead Major U.S. Business Delegation to Uzbekistan for C5+1 Talks
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will lead a delegation including executives from more than 100 American companies to Uzbekistan in October. The visit will bring a substantial business contingent to talks with Central Asia’s foreign ministers in Samarkand. Sergio Gor, the U.S. special envoy for South and Central Asia, announced the visit in a statement published by the U.S. Embassy in India. Gor said the talks would focus on “deepening regional economic connectivity, enhancing energy security,” alongside cooperation on shared regional priorities. The delegation is expected in mid-October, alongside a C5+1 ministerial meeting. The C5+1 format brings together the United States and Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Bringing executives from more than 100 companies gives Rubio’s visit a substantial commercial component. The delegation’s composition should indicate which sectors Washington is ready to back following last year’s C5+1 agreements. In November 2025, Rubio announced his intention to visit all five Central Asian countries in 2026. Speaking ahead of the Washington C5+1 summit, he suggested such a tour could take a week. The Samarkand announcement gives a destination and timeframe for his regional engagement, although it does not establish an itinerary covering all five states. President Donald Trump hosted the five Central Asian presidents in Washington on November 6, 2025. Commercial agreements featured prominently in the summit, reflecting a greater focus on investment within the C5+1 framework. The U.S. Commerce Department said the “Deal Zone” business event held alongside the November 2025 C5+1 summit featured more than $25 billion in announced commercial deals. Air Astana’s agreement covered up to 15 Boeing 787-9 aircraft, comprising five firm orders, five options, and five purchase rights. Tajikistan’s Somon Air announced plans to acquire up to four Dreamliners and ten 737 MAX jets. Uzbekistan Airways finalized an order for eight additional Boeing 787-9 aircraft during the summit. Boeing said the purchase brought the airline’s total order to 22 Dreamliners, converting options from an earlier agreement into firm orders. In mining, Cove Capital and Kazakhstan’s Tau-Ken Samruk agreed to develop the Severny Katpar and Verkhne Kairakty tungsten deposits. The projected $1.1 billion investment includes two processing plants and a metallurgical facility. Kazakhstan’s technology announcements included a memorandum for $2 billion in advanced AI-chip procurement, involving NVIDIA, Freedom Holding, and the country’s digital ministry. Critical minerals cooperation has also advanced since the Washington summit. During a February 4 visit to the U.S. capital, Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov attended a ministerial meeting devoted to the sector and held talks with Rubio. Saidov and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau signed a memorandum on mineral supplies, covering the mining and processing of critical minerals and rare earths. Uzbekistan’s Foreign Ministry said the country was seeking foreign technology and investment to develop the industry, with an emphasis on value-added production. For Tashkent, the unresolved question is how much mineral processing American investors will finance inside Uzbekistan. October’s talks could clarify whether February’s memorandum will lead to domestic processing facilities, allowing the country to retain more of the value of its mineral exports.
Pannier and Hillard’s Spotlight on Central Asia: New Episode Coming Sunday
As Managing Editor of The Times of Central Asia, I’m delighted that, in partnership with the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs, we are the home of the Spotlight on Central Asia podcast. Chaired by seasoned broadcasters Bruce Pannier of RFE/RL’s long-running Majlis podcast and Michael Hillard of The Red Line, each fortnightly instalment will take you on a deep dive into the latest news, developments, security issues, and social trends across an increasingly pivotal region. This week, the team will be covering Turkmenistan's changing foreign policy and the preservation of stability at home. Special guest: Luca Anceschi, Professor of Eurasian Studies at the University of Glasgow and the author of several books on Central Asian politics and foreign policy.
Kazatomprom Secures New Uranium Block as Nuclear Demand Expands
Kazakhstan has granted its state-controlled uranium producer Kazatomprom six-year exploration rights to the Kyzyltu block in the Kyzylorda region, where preliminary resources are estimated at around 10,000 metric tons. Kazatomprom announced the exploration license on September 21 and said geological exploration would begin shortly to determine the block’s commercial potential. Kazakhstan remains the world’s largest uranium producer, accounting for roughly 40% of global mine production. Kazatomprom reported output of 25,839 metric tons in 2025 on a 100% basis, including its partners’ shares. The new exploration rights follow a wider effort by Kazatomprom to replenish its resource base. In March, the company outlined six prospective exploration areas covering more than 1,000 square kilometers, with planned exploration spending through 2030 of $155 million to $176 million. The company is also pursuing longer-term supply agreements with overseas buyers. An August outlook from Bloomberg Intelligence expects Kazatomprom and Canada’s Cameco to provide much of the increase in global uranium mine production during the remainder of this decade. Bloomberg estimates mined supply could rise 23% from 2025 levels to around 193 million pounds of U₃O₈ annually during 2028–2031. It estimates Kazatomprom could reach around 80 million pounds of U₃O₈ annually if sufficient sulfuric acid is available. In this base scenario, the uranium market could remain in surplus through 2031 before moving into deficit from 2032, as demand rises and depletion of low-cost reserves in Kazakhstan and Canada constrains supply. New mines generally require long development periods, limiting the ability of supply to respond quickly to higher demand. China is the largest near-term source of additional demand, accounting for 45% of nuclear capacity currently under construction or planned and has set a target of 110 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2030. The United States and European Union are also major markets for Central Asian uranium. U.S. civilian reactor operators purchased 46.9 million pounds of U₃O₈ equivalent in 2025, with Kazakhstan accounting for 28% of deliveries and Uzbekistan 7%, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. EU utilities purchased 14,678 metric tons of natural uranium in 2025, with Kazakhstan accounting for 20.3% of deliveries and Uzbekistan 10.4%, according to the Euratom Supply Agency. The European Commission’s nuclear investment assessment projects EU nuclear capacity rising from 98 gigawatts in 2025 to around 109 gigawatts by 2050. Kazakhstan also retains a production-cost advantage. Bloomberg attributes this largely to the widespread use of in-situ recovery, which allows uranium to be extracted without conventional open-pit or underground mining. Sulfuric Acid Supply Remains a Constraint Kazatomprom’s September 21 announcement also addressed Russian sulfuric-acid deliveries, an important issue because the chemical is used extensively in Kazakhstan’s in-situ uranium operations. The company said Russian measures introduced on September 12 had changed export approval procedures through the end of 2026, but had not prohibited exports. Russian suppliers had confirmed their intention to fulfill existing 2026 contracts and were seeking the necessary approvals. Kazatomprom said it did not expect the changes to have a material effect on its 2026 operations or production guidance. Talks over supplies for 2027 are continuing. The company’s 2026 production guidance remains 27,500 to 29,000 metric tons on a 100% basis, including the shares attributable to partners in its joint ventures. The TQZ sulfuric-acid plant in the Turkestan region is designed to produce 800,000 metric tons annually. Kazatomprom said in its August 21 results that commissioning had been postponed from early 2027 to between the third quarter of 2027 and the first quarter of 2028 after potential fossils were found during construction. The company said it did not expect the delay to materially affect uranium mining operations. At the Zhalpak deposit, Kazatomprom’s Ortalyk venture commissioned a processing plant on July 29 with annual capacity of up to 500 metric tons. Expansion to 900 metric tons is planned for 2027.
TRIPP Is a Logical Extension of the Middle Corridor
Kazakhstan views the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, or TRIPP, as a natural extension of the Middle Corridor that could shorten transport routes to European markets by around 1,000 kilometers, a senior representative of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said in New York. Erzhan Kazykhan, Representative of the President of Kazakhstan for Negotiations with the United States, made the remarks at the 7th Caspian Business Forum, organized by the Caspian Policy Center in New York on September 22. “For Kazakhstan, it’s not simply a transport route. It’s a strategic investment into our future,” Kazykhan said of the Middle Corridor. “It is a platform for connectivity with the South Caucasus, Türkiye, and Europe.” “Kazakhstan sees TRIPP as a logical extension of the Middle Corridor,” he said, explaining that the route would shorten Kazakhstan’s access to European markets by hundreds of kilometers. TRIPP was announced at the White House summit between Armenia and Azerbaijan on August 8, 2025. The planned multimodal route would cross Armenian territory under Armenian sovereignty and jurisdiction, connecting mainland Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave and adding another link to the Trans-Caspian trade network. Kazakhstan Examines Role in TRIPP Kazykhan said Kazakhstan has sent a technical assessment team to examine what role the country could play and is considering participation in construction connected with TRIPP. He placed that interest alongside Kazakhstan’s own investment in transport. Over the past 15 years, he said, the country has invested about $35 billion in the sector and built more than 2,500 kilometers of new mainline railway. The government plans another 5,000 kilometers over the next four years. Kazykhan said the next challenge is making the infrastructure work as a single route, including smoother border crossings and enough long-term financing. Kyrgyzstan’s Minister of Economy and Commerce, Bakyt Sydykov, also argued against treating new routes as competing national projects. He said TRIPP, the Trans-Caspian route, the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway and other corridors should operate as parts of the same regional logistics system. “The Middle Corridor must become an economic corridor, not only a transit corridor,” Sydykov said. He argued that countries such as Kyrgyzstan should capture more value from the trade moving through the region, pointing to logistics centers, warehouses, processing facilities, digital customs systems and industrial development around the routes. Financing remains another issue. Sydykov said governments could not fund all of the required infrastructure themselves. Mark Cameron, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, said the newly operational Trans-Caspian Enterprise Fund is designed to use U.S. government grant resources to establish the commercial viability of projects and help attract additional private investment. Connecting the Routes Türkiye’s Deputy Foreign Minister Berris Ekinci described TRIPP as complementary to the Middle Corridor rather than a rival route. “TRIPP shouldn’t be viewed as a separate or competing corridor,” she said. Ekinci said its importance would depend on how it connects with existing railway, road and port infrastructure. She described the Middle Corridor as the main east-west backbone, with TRIPP potentially filling a longstanding connectivity gap through the South Caucasus. She also stressed the need for efficient customs procedures, interoperable systems, digital logistics and predictable regulation alongside physical infrastructure. Azerbaijan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Yalchin Rafiyev pointed to investments in the Port of Baku, the Alat Free Economic Zone and the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway. He said physical infrastructure needs to be matched by more efficient borders and digitalized customs, and argued that TRIPP could support both commercial ties and the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process. Georgia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Lasha Darsalia placed those connections in the wider route toward the Black Sea and European Union. He described the Middle Corridor as an important part of Eurasian connectivity and highlighted Georgia’s efforts to strengthen infrastructure and cooperation with neighboring countries, financial institutions and the private sector. Beyond Rail Kazykhan also pointed to Kazakhstan’s locomotive manufacturing capacity in Astana, where the Wabtec operation has produced around 700 locomotives. He cited the Trans-Caspian fiber-optic connection between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, plans for green-energy links across the Caspian and Kazakhstan’s increasing use of Azerbaijan for westward oil exports. Cameron also highlighted the Kazakhstan-Azerbaijan fiber-optic connection as an example of digital infrastructure developing alongside the transport network. Kazakhstan has spent years building alternatives for reaching international markets. As the world’s largest landlocked country, it has invested heavily in routes across the Caspian and toward Europe. The discussion then turned to financing. Claire Kaiser of McLarty Associates said there was corporate interest in discussions around a “TRIPP Plus” or “greater TRIPP” concept. The question, she said, was whether that interest could be converted into bankable projects. Jamshid Ehsani of Apollo Global Management said the obstacle was not necessarily a lack of capital, but finding financing structures suited to large, long-term infrastructure projects. “The capital is there,” he said. “Get the structure right. Bring the right counterparty to the table.”
At Least Nine Kazakh Servicemen Killed During Caspian Sea Exercises
At least nine Kazakh servicemen have died during naval exercises in the Caspian Sea on September 24, Kazakhstan’s Defense Ministry said. Search operations continued after strong winds carried military personnel out to sea in the western Mangistau region. The ministry’s initial statement said 19 servicemen had been swept away following a sudden deterioration in weather conditions. Three were rescued, including one who was hospitalized. The ministry confirmed nine deaths and said rescuers were searching for the others. A subsequent report by Ulysmedia said its correspondent at the scene had reported the recovery of 12 bodies. That figure had not been officially confirmed. The report said divers were searching underwater while two helicopters assisted from above. The Prosecutor General’s Office announced a criminal investigation into the deaths, with an investigative team formed to establish the circumstances of the incident. Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov also established a government commission, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev. Bektenov instructed him to travel immediately to the scene, oversee a comprehensive investigation, and arrange assistance for the bereaved families. The Defense Ministry separately dispatched a commission led by Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov. Naval units and emergency services joined the search, with aviation support. The ministry said the families of those killed would receive assistance. Two days earlier, the ministry had announced the start of the Khazar Korgany-2026 exercises in Kazakhstan’s sector of the Caspian Sea. More than 500 personnel were involved, alongside naval vessels and coastal units. However, the ministry’s initial account of the deaths did not identify the exercise by name. The deaths come amid continuing concern over peacetime fatalities in Kazakhstan’s armed forces. The circumstances of the Caspian incident remain under investigation, including how the servicemen became stranded in the water. By order of the Head of State, a day of national mourning has been declared for September 25, 2026.
Lithuania Closures Highlight Limits of Central Asia’s Migration Shift Away From Russia
Lithuania will close external service provider centers that accept migration documents in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan on November 1. A day before the announcement, Lithuania’s Migration Department said external service centers in Central Asia had stopped accepting new applications from residents seeking to come to the country for work after receiving a very high volume of employment applications. Lithuania had also exhausted its annual quota for foreign workers earlier in September. Interior Minister Martynas Katelynas said the November 1 closures were prompted by security risks and the threat of terrorism. The centers act as intermediaries, accepting applications for Lithuanian residence permits and initiating migration procedures Lithuania’s State Security Department has previously reported identifying individual members of the Central Asian community with radical views or links to terrorism. In its annual threat assessment, the agency also said that Islamic State Khorasan Province, or ISIS-K, has been recruiting followers within Central Asian diaspora communities in Europe. However, the agency said it considers it unlikely that Lithuania itself will become a direct target for Islamist terrorists in the near term. The security decision comes as Lithuania has also reached its annual foreign-worker quota. The country set a quota of 24,706 foreign workers for 2026, which was officially declared exhausted on September 7. Once the quota is reached, a temporary residence permit based on employment remains available if the worker meets a higher salary threshold or belongs to certain high-value professions that are in shortage and meets the separate salary requirement for those professions. As of September 1, nearly 227,000 foreign nationals held valid residence permits in Lithuania. They included around 13,000 Uzbek citizens and 7,400 Tajik citizens. Demand for Lithuania has grown alongside broader interest in the European labor market. Between 2018 and 2024, the number of valid EU work permits held by Uzbek citizens increased roughly eightfold, those held by Kyrgyz citizens more than sevenfold, and those held by Tajik citizens more than fourteenfold. Poland has become one of the main destinations, Germany is expanding organized recruitment, and the UK has become an important source of seasonal work, while labor mobility programs are also emerging elsewhere in Europe. Conditions are also changing in Russia, which for decades has absorbed most of the region’s labor migrants. Following the March 2024 Crocus City Hall terrorist attack, the authorities tightened migration rules, expanded registration requirements, and introduced greater digital monitoring of foreign workers. In the first half of 2026, citizens of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan made around 1.9 million entries into Russia declaring work as the purpose of their trip, down from more than 2.3 million a year earlier. The decline does not mean that there is no longer dependence on the Russian labor market. In the first quarter of 2026, Russia accounted for 72.4% of cross-border remittances to Uzbekistan. In Kyrgyzstan, a March 2025 estimate put the number of citizens living abroad at roughly 600,000; around 380,000 were registered with Russian migration authorities at the end of 2024. For Central Asian migrants, European migration is on a far smaller scale. In 2024, Central Asian citizens accounted for only around 1.5% of valid EU work permits issued to third-country nationals. Uzbekistan was the region’s largest source of labor for the EU; its citizens held nearly 38,000 valid permits and received more than 19,000 new ones. The way people find work also differs. Many Central Asians have traditionally traveled to Russia independently and looked for jobs after arriving. Visa-free travel, the Russian language, direct transport links, and established diaspora communities lower the barriers to entry. Kazakh and Kyrgyz citizens can work in Russia without a work permit under Eurasian Economic Union rules, though hostility toward Central Asian migrants has increased markedly. In the EU, the journey more often begins with a job vacancy. Employers select candidates in advance, while some professions require language skills and recognition of qualifications. Germany already uses this model with Uzbekistan, where candidates are recruited for specific jobs. In 2025, 1,755 Uzbek citizens legally started working in Germany, and in January 2026 Uzbekistan’s Migration Agency advertised more than 500 new vacancies alongside free German-language courses. A study by the Prague Process Migration Observatory found that the most common sectors include construction, healthcare, tourism, and IT. Among the main challenges identified by the authors are the recognition of qualifications, long-term sustainability, and support for workers returning home. A separate ICMPD Migration Outlook said large-scale increases in migration from Central Asia to the EU were unlikely in 2026 under current admission rules, although it expected gradual expansion as new programs and bilateral agreements develop. For Central Asian workers, however, the search for jobs abroad is not limited to Europe. Uzbekistan is expanding organized employment programs in South Korea and Japan. South Korea operates the state-run Employment Permit System, or EPS; since 2007, nearly 50,000 Uzbek citizens have found jobs through the program. Korean employers are now also involved in training workers directly in Uzbekistan. Kyrgyzstan works with employers in the Gulf states. In 2026, licenses for overseas recruitment covered destinations including Turkey and the Gulf countries. Tajikistan is also looking for employment opportunities in the Gulf states and East Asia. Each labor market has its own specialization. The United Kingdom primarily recruits seasonal workers. Germany hires workers for specific occupations. South Korea uses a state-run system to select foreign workers: in 2026, Korean employers continued selecting Uzbek citizens through the SPAS electronic database. In the Gulf states, vacancies are available across sectors including construction and services. As the geography of migration changes, so do preparations for departure. Dushanbe has a Migrant Resource Centre where prospective migrants receive information about legal migration channels and help with preparations for departure. Kyrgyzstan has opened similar centers in Osh and Bishkek, with the Bishkek center starting operations in May 2026. A similar facility has operated in Tashkent since August 2025. Checking vacancies, signing contracts, and completing language and professional training are increasingly taking place before workers leave home. Lithuania’s closures show that Central Asia’s migration shift away from Russia will not be straightforward. New destinations are opening, but they come with tighter entry rules and fewer informal routes into work.
Astana’s WIPO City of Innovation Bid Reaches Final 15
Astana is the only Central Asian city among 15 finalists for the inaugural World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) City of Innovation Award. WIPO, a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN), announced the finalists on September 22. Shanghai, Moscow, and Liverpool are among the other cities competing for the award. The award focuses on what cities pledge to do over the following 12 months rather than what they have already achieved. Judges consider the ambition of those plans, how well they fit each city’s circumstances, and whether they can realistically be carried out. Astana’s submission is heavily focused on technology. The city proposes an artificial intelligence- and data-enabled Smart City platform and a single digital gateway for personalized public services, alongside projects intended to improve accessibility and sustainability. Those plans build on several years of investment in the capital’s digital infrastructure. Astana has been selected three times for the Intelligent Community Forum’s Smart21 Communities of the Year, in 2015, 2017, and 2023. The program recognizes cities and regions using connectivity, technology, and knowledge-based development to improve their economies and communities. A much larger smart-city project began in February 2025 when the city signed a six-year, $190 million agreement with Presight to introduce artificial intelligence across urban infrastructure, traffic management, and public services. The project includes a digital twin of the capital, bringing together information from city systems and sensors to support planning and day-to-day management. The project is being developed alongside a wider technology ecosystem. As The Times of Central Asia has reported, Astana Hub has more than 2,200 companies in its ecosystem, while the Alem.ai International Artificial Intelligence Center brings together startups, researchers, technology companies, and government projects. Presight opened its first Central Asian research and development laboratory at Alem.ai in October 2025, with smart-city applications among its areas of work. The WIPO nomination comes as Astana rolls out a model of city management built around artificial intelligence, connected infrastructure, and data. An independent international jury will choose up to three winners. They will be announced on October 12 at WIPO headquarters in Geneva, on the margins of the sixth UN Forum of Mayors.
Short Stories from the Region
