Image: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine

06 May 2024
Central Asia, Home, International Affairs, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Features, Kazakhstan Featurees

Kazakhstan offers to host platform for Russia-Ukraine negotiations

Kazakhstan is prepared to host negotiations to settle the war in Ukraine, according to comments made by Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Russia, Dauren Abayev, in an interview with the Russian state news outlet TASS.

“Certainly, Kazakhstan is always ready to help on all processes that concern the world. This is not only Russia and Ukraine, but also Armenia and Azerbaijan, on the Syrian issue, on the Iranian issue. It is probably [an overstatement] to say to be mediators, but to provide a platform, to create some conditions, we are certainly ready,” Abayev said.

He added: “There are many different initiatives now, and there is a clear understanding that without Russia’s participation, these processes are impossible. Of course, Russia’s opinion should always be taken into account in these processes. Of course, we are ready to be, as I say, not mediators, but to provide a platform, to create some conditions,” he added.

As previously reported in the media, Kazakhstan’s president Kasym-Jomart Tokayev, during his recent visits to Azerbaijan and Armenia, underscored Kazakhstan’s readiness to provide platforms for negotiations between Baku and Yerevan. The Armenian foreign ministry said that a direct meeting of the sides will be held as early as May 10.

Previously, Kazakhstan provided a platform for negotiations on the war in Syria. Negotiations concerning the Iranian nuclear program have also been held in Kazakhstan.

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@iStock

06 May 2024
Central Asia, Uzbekistan, International Affairs, Business & Economy, Uzbekistan Business & Economy, Uzbekistan International Affairs

Saudi and Emirati Companies to Build Two Wind Farms in Uzbekistan

Saudi and Emirati companies are to invest $7 billion in the construction of two windfarms in the Kungrad district of Uzbekistan’s autonomous Karakalpakstan republic.

The announcement followed the signing of two contracts  during the third Tashkent Investment Forum. The commission of the facilities will save almost 7 billion cubic meters of natural gas and prevent the emission of more than 2 billion tons of harmful gases into the atmosphere.

Welcoming the initiative, the Uzbek Energy Ministry said, “Saudi company ACWA Power is implementing a megaproject to build a wind farm with a total capacity of 5 gigawatts in the Kungrad district of Karakalpakstan. The project is estimated at $6.2 billion. The station will generate 17.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. A wind power plant with a total capacity of 1 gigawatt and a cost of $1.1 billion will be built in the same area by Amea Power from the UAE. It will generate 3.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year,” .

During the third Tashkent International Investment Forum, agreements signed by several government and private-sector counterparties, totalled $26.6 billion .

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primeminister.kz

06 May 2024
Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan Environment, Kazakhstan Home

Kazakhstan Forwards Water-Saving Technology

On May 6, the Kazakh Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation reported on measures being taken to encourage farmers to save and use water more efficiently.

The move addresses Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s earlier criticism about the process of introducing water-saving technologies being “extremely slow,” with agricultural sectors in some regions, experiencing annual losses of water of 40%.

According to plans set in motion by the ministry, by 2030, the installation of water-saving technologies will provide an annual saving of up to 2.1 cubic kilometres of water on 50% of the country’s irrigated land

To date, subsidies for drilling irrigation wells have been increased to 80% of their costs, and in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, work is progressing to increase subsidies for the installation of water-saving systems from 50% to 80% of their costs.

In adherence to the new Water Code, the state will provide subsidies and reduced tariffs for water supply depending on the extent to which water-saving technologies are used. Tariffs for irrigation water are set to be calculated according to the types of crops grown and the volume of water required for their production.

The ministry is also working to digitalize 3,500 km of irrigation canals in the Almaty, Zhambyl, Kyzylorda, and Turkestan regions in the south of the country, which will improve water metering on 362 thousand hectares of irrigated land and enable a saving up to 600 million cubic meters of water annually.

 

 

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@Chronicles of Turkmenistan

06 May 2024
Central Asia, Turkmenistan Life & Culture, Turkmenistan, Turkmenistan Local Politics, Local Politics

Citizens of Turkmenistan Being Prevented From Flying Abroad

Cases of citizens of Turkmenistan flying abroad being prevented from boarding the plane just before departure are becoming more frequent. This is according to a report by Azatlyk Radiosy, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s affiliate in Turkmenistan.

Those who managed to leave say that they were interviewed by officials at the airport, and forced to pledge not to talk about the problems inside Turkmenistan, but rather to praise the country.

According to the publication, Turkmen citizens have faced various difficulties when traveling abroad for several years. It now takes as long as two years to receive a biometric passport, which is only issued inside the country. Obtaining a foreign visa and purchasing tickets also involves unnecessary bureaucratic hassle.

Among Turkmen citizens having difficulties leaving their home country are many who had been forced to return home when their passports expired — and are now planning to leave again. “According to government instructions, security officers don’t let such citizens out of the country. Border guards create various problems for citizens at the airport, do not let them on the plane and force them to return,” said someone who themselves had been prevented from leaving Turkmenistan. Citizens are not being reimbursed for all of the associated costs of their planned — and then canceled — trips abroad.

Noted Radio Azatlyk in its report: “Cases of passengers leaving Turkmenistan, including migrant workers and citizens going to study abroad, being taken off flights have happened before. Representatives of the migration service have never officially commented on the situation. But the bans were reported anonymously at various times by sources in the migration service. In 2018, young women were banned from leaving the country, and then all citizens under the age of 40 were removed from flights en masse. When introducing and removing such bans, instructions are given verbally.”

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@gov.us

06 May 2024
Central Asia, Uzbekistan, International Affairs, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan International Affairs, Business & Economy, Uzbekistan Business & Economy, Kyrgyzstan Business & Economy, Uzbekistan International Affairs

Joint Portfolio of Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia Projects Exceeds $30 Billion

On May 2, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev welcomed representatives of several countries to the Tashkent International Investment Forum.

In discussion with the Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore, Sia Kian Peng, the two sides focused on cooperation in personnel training, investment, tourism and public safety, and emphasized the importance of joint, effective parliamentary control over their bilateral high-level agreements.

During negotiations between Mirziyoyev  and the Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan Aqilbek Japarov, the two leaders  concentrated on deepening strategic partnership between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, expansion of cooperation in various trade sectors such as industrial, energy, transport and logistics, and  marshalling interregional relations and cultural-humanitarian exchange. Special attention was paid to practical issues relating to the Kambarata HPP-1 (hydropower plant) and China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway projects.

A delegation led by Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al-Saud, Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia, used the opportunity to discuss the further expansion of practical cooperation, and the implementation of priority investment projects in Uzbekistan. The high level of bilateral trade and investment partnerships already achieved was noted. The portfolio of joint projects currently exceeds $30 billion, with Saudi Arabia’s ACWA serving as a keen investor in Uzbek wind power generation.

According to data provided by the Uzbek Government, agreements to implement projects worth $18 billion in the fields of green energy, infrastructure, healthcare and pharmaceuticals are set to be signed within the framework of the Tashkent International Investment Forum.

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@ulysmedia

06 May 2024
Central Asia, International Affairs, Business & Economy, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan International Affairs, Kazakhstan Business & Economy

Kazakh Billionaire Lomtadze Buys Majority Stake in English Soccer Club

Kazakhstani billionaire Mikhail Lomtadze, co-founder of fintech and banking giant Kaspi.kz, has acquired a controlling stake in the English soccer club Wycombe Wanderers.

Following approval by the English Football League (EFL), he joins Eduard Vyshnyakov and Dan Rice as new members of Wanderers’ board of directors.

The club plays in England’s League One (third division) and as a 90% stakeholder, through his company Blue Ocean Partners II Limited,  Lomtadze plans to change its development strategy.

In an interview with the British newspaper The Sun, he explained, “Our goal is to achieve long-term success both on and off the pitch, while creating a financially sustainable club. The soccer world is evolving very quickly and our priority will be to integrate data analytics and technology to take the club’s performance to the next level. I am also a firm believer in youth development and this will be fundamental to the vision of the club. We aim to reopen and build a leading high performance academy, which will be an important part of our long-term strategy to develop a club that consistently performs at the highest level.”

Whilst Wanderers fans are hopeful for positive changes, in Kazakhstan news of Lomtadze’s purchase was met with skepticism. Opinions shared on social media suggest that the online banking magnate’s investment would have been better placed in developing local sports.

With a fortune estimated at $5.7 billion, Lomtadze ranks fifth in the list of the richest businessmen in Kazakhstan, and in 581st place on the Forbes global list of billionaires.

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