Via The Jamestown Foundation, an article on the Caspian region: Geopolitical competition in the Caspian Sea region over oil and natural gas fields, pipelines carrying these hydrocarbons across that body of water, and security measures intended to protect both have attracted the bulk of the attention of the littoral states as well as outside powers […]
Read more »Via The Diplomat, an article on Kazakhstan’s 2025 Development Plan: The government of Kazakhstan recently released its National Development Plan Through 2025, which complements the government’s primary objective of becoming one of the world’s 30 most developed nations by 2050. Overall, the plan is a continuation of Nur-Sultan’s current strategy of economic diversification, which includes heavily investing in […]
Read more »Via Eurasianet, a report on China’s hopes to reduce energy imports and cut emissions, which may raise questions about the need for additional gas from Central Asia: Central Asia’s natural gas producers have only one eager buyer: China. And though China has a growing appetite, it has signaled intentions to source more energy domestically. What does […]
Read more »Via Emerging Europe, a look at potential for Central Asia to fall prey to the ‘resource curse’: Across the globe, countries with a wealth of natural resources are broadly authoritarian and corrupt. Central Asia is no exception. The Caspian Sea region is one of the world’s richest in terms of natural resources. This has contributed […]
Read more »Via The Diplomat, an article on the decision of another investor to leave Kazakhstan, highlighting the worsening business climate: At the end of December, OMV Petrom sold its assets in Kazakhstan, marking the exit of yet another investor from the Central Asian country, which is still embattled in court spats with other foreign entities. The sale […]
Read more »Via The Journal Pioneer, commentary on Kazakhstan’s economy: At 2.7 million square kilometres in area, Kazakhstan, one of the former central Asian republics of the Soviet Union, is the ninth-largest country in the world. It encompasses an area roughly as big as Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria combined. Until two years ago, everyone […]
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