Farkhad Sharip
Farkhad Sharip is an independent journalist who lives in Alma-Aty, Kazakhstan.
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Articles by Farkhad Sharip
Language-Motivated Emigration of Russians Causes Shortage of Qualified Workers in Kazakhstan
In mid-October, the nationalist-leaning Qazaquni.kz website, run by the Ak Zhol (Democratic Party) of Kazakhstan, published an appeal to Russian-speaking compatriots, calling on them to learn Kazakh. The article stresses...
Revival of Pan-Turkism in Kazakhstan Threatens Pillars of Eurasian Union
The term “pan-Turkism,” which carried a similarly ominous meaning as “enemy of the people” under Joseph Stalin and his Soviet successors, has become a strong component of Kazakhs’ search for...
Faced With Chinese Expansion, Kazakhstan Seeks Alternative Energy Markets
It could be assumed that the intensifying trade war between the United States and China would cause economic slowdown in China and result, in the long run, in the drastic...
Kazakhstan and Tajikistan Renew Joint Efforts to Curb Islamic Extremism
During the March 14 Astana summit of the leaders of all five Central Asian states (see EDM, March 20, 21), the minister of religious affairs and civil society of Kazakhstan,...
Government Reshuffle in Bishkek and Kyrgyzstan’s Steady Drift Away From Kazakhstan
The security forces of Kazakhstan carried out a special operation on February 16, and detained 29 members of a criminal gang, which included customs officials as well as law enforcement...
Half-Hearted Reforms May Erode Social Stability in Kazakhstan
Against the backdrop of turbulent developments over the last two decades in neighboring Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan may arguably be called an island of prosperity in Central Asia. In his...
Astana Grapples With Growing Sinophobic Sentiment in Kazakhstan
Following bloody clashes between ethnic Uyghurs and Han Chinese in the city of Urumchi, in Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, in the summer of 2009, Beijing resorted to both carrot and...
Controversial Railway Project Consolidates China’s Foothold in Central Asia
On November 5, a cargo train from Kokshetau, North Kazakhstan, carrying 30 containers of wheat, arrived in the Turkish harbor city of Mersin, on the Mediterranean coast. What made this...
Public Protests Against Russian Military Presence Mounting in Kazakhstan
In a rare show of solidarity, a large group of Kazakhstani intellectuals, writers, prominent public figures, as well as activists of diverse opposition forces and political parties released an open...
Kyrgyzstan’s Thorny Road: Sooronbay Zheenbayev Inherits Burdensome Legacy From His Predecessor
Preliminary results of the presidential elections held in Kyrgyzstan, on October 15, announced by the Central Election Committee, may come as a surprise to observers who followed pre-election developments (see...
Nazarbayev’s Gambit on the Kyrgyz Election Chessboard: Reasons for Courting Omurbek Babanov
In what seemed like an ill-considered move amid the highly tense pre-election atmosphere in Kyrgyzstan, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev received the self-nominated presidential candidate Omurbek Babanov, in Almaty, on...
Encroaching Extremism in West Kazakhstan: A Challenge for ‘Cyber Shield’
Speaking at a joint session of Kazakhstan’s parliament, on September 4, President Nursultan Nazarbayev stressed the importance of speeding up the implementation of the “Cyber Shield” information security project, one...
Kazakhstan’s Borders Remain Vulnerable in the Face of Potential Terrorist Threat
The quick succession of alarming incidents at the Arkan Kergen and Tersayryk border posts (see EDM, June 27) revealed deep-running security problems and raised public concerns about the state of...
Uzbekistan’s Quest for Aral Sea Oil May Weaken Kazakhstan’s Position in the Caspian
As a part of its incessant attempts to consolidate its presence in the energy sector of Central Asia, on January 17, the board of executives of the Russian company, Lukoil,...
Militants Escalate Terrorist Attacks In Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, once depicted as an island of stability invulnerable to the encroachments of Islamist extremists is no longer a safe place in turbulent Central Asia. Over the last seven months...
Kazakhstan Imposes Tougher Measures to Stem the Rise of Religious Extremism
On October 6, the regional court of Aktobe in western Kazakhstan announced verdicts on four members of a terrorist gang. The men were accused of killing two policemen and a...
Kazakhstan’s CSTO Membership Looks Gloomy
The Kremlin-orchestrated Tsentr-2011 military exercises of the Collective Security Organization Treaty (CSTO), hosted simultaneously by Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan and lasting almost one week, served for Astana not only...
Kazakh Authorities Ignore Political Implications of Strikes in Karazhanbas Oilfields
The popular British singer Sting disappointed thousands of his followers in Kazakhstan by suddenly canceling his concert scheduled for July 4 to celebrate the Day of Astana. The embarrassed promoters...
Radical Islamists Step Up Militancy in West Kazakhstan
The ruling elite of Kazakhstan, in its pursuit of foreign investment in the largely oil-dependent economy, invariably depicts the country as an oasis of peace and political stability in Central...
China to Benefit from Kazakhstan Toughening Stance Against Western Oil Companies
Official statistical data released recently says Kazakhstan, which marks its twentieth year of independence this December, has produced around 900 million tons of oil over the last 20 years. Lyazzat...
Astana Hosts Islamic Economic Conference Downplaying Political Dimensions
With the recital of verses from the Koran, on June 7 the seventh World Islamic Economic Conference opened in Astana. The widely publicized event marked an important milestone in Kazakhstan’s...
Chinese Pawns on the Kazakh Political Chessboard: Masimov Versus Kulibayev?
Although Nursultan Nazarbayev, during his election campaign vowed to stay at the helm as long as his health permits, in the corridors of power the undercurrent wrangling for the crown...
Russia Pressures Kazakhstan’s Ties With Georgia
Kazakhstan is increasingly uncomfortable within the Customs Union with Belarus and Russia due to the constant attempts by the Kremlin to politicize the structure originally intended to boost trade relations...
Nazarbayev Celebrates Landslide Victory, Promises Multi-Party Parliament
On April 3, more than nine million voters in Kazakhstan went to the polls to participate in the early presidential election. The final results of the voting announced by the...
China Seeks Uranium Ore in Kazakhstan
Future prospects for cooperation between China and Kazakhstan were high on the agenda during President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s visit to Beijing on February 21. This overshadowed all other complicated and long-drawn...
Kazakh Opposition Admits Defeat Ahead of the Presidential Election
On February 21, Kazakhstan’s Central Election Commission announced that 22 candidates had submitted their applications to participate in the upcoming presidential election scheduled for April 3, but only 14 were...
Astana OSCE Summit Ends in Division
International attention focused on Astana on December 1-2, where the leaders of the 56 member-countries gathered for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) summit, billed by the...
China’s Expansionist Policy Toward Kazakhstan Takes a New Turn
In a bid to expand its presence in Central Asia in geopolitical competition with the US and Russia, China seems determined to use every available means ranging from the energy...
Power Struggle Intensifies in Nazarbayev’s Court as Presidential Elections Draw Near
In anticipation of the 2012 presidential elections, political tension is mounting in Kazakhstan. Recent developments suggest President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who celebrated his 70th birthday last July, intends to perpetuate his...
Kazakhstan’s Uncertain Future in the Customs Union
On July 1, the Customs Union between Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus formally came into force. However, the occasion produced no cause for celebration among the members of the Customs Union....
Astana and Tashkent Pursue Reconciliation Following the Kyrgyz Crisis
The clashes between Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbeks in the Osh and Jalalabad regions of Kyrgyzstan forced the Uzbek and Kazakh Presidents, Islam Karimov and Nursultan Nazarbayev, to abandon their rivalry...
A Tale of Two Presidents: Astana Fears the Spread of the “Kyrgyz Virus”
Kazakhstan’s official attitude towards the provisional government in Bishkek is growing more contradictory. President Nursultan Nazarbayev never tires of talking about Kazakhstan’s commitments as the Chairman of the Organization for...
Could the Bishkek Scenario Repeat Itself in Kazakhstan?
The second wave of revolution, which swept the Kyrgyz President, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, from power, has sent a clear warning to the ruling elite in Astana. The National Security Committee (KNB)...
Nazarbayev Labors to Mend Fences with Tashkent
On March 17, Kazakhstan’s President, Nursultan Nazarbayev, arrived in Tashkent to discuss bilateral relations with his Uzbek counterpart and regional rival. Although the visit was prompted by an official invitation...
Russian Orthodox Church Prioritizes “Integration” With Kazakhstan
On January 16, the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC) Kirill Frolov arrived in Astana for a two-day visit. He attempted to lend a purely religious character to his...
China Tightens Grip on Kazakh Gas
Profuse eulogies such as a “milestone in Sino-Kazakh’ relations,” “an epoch-making event” were the most frequently uttered by the Chinese President Hu Jintao and his Kazakh counterpart Nursultan Nazarbayev after...
Customs Union with Russia and Belarus Raises Doubts in Kazakhstan
Fielding questions from viewers on state-controlled television channels on November 13 Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev announced that on November 27 the leaders of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan would gather in...
Moscow Watchful Over Kazakh-Turkish Partnership Agreement
On October 21 Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev met his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul in Ankara. During his extended official visit Nazarbayev prioritized cultural and economic links with Turkey and stressed...
Nazarbayev Perpetuates his Rule as Kazakhstan Prepares for OSCE Chairmanship
Recent developments in Kazakhstan clearly indicate that the human rights record and its press freedom are worsening as the country prepares to take hold of the Chairmanship of the Organization...
Nazarbayev Purges Army of Corrupt Top Brass
One month after the dismissal of Kazakhstan's Defense Minister Daniyal Akhmetov by presidential decree on June 17, persistent rumors are still circulating about his alleged suicide. Unconfirmed reports in some...
Astana Steps Closer to Military Alliance with Moscow
In his address to the Collective Security Treaty Organization's (CSTO) summit in Moscow on June 14, Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev assured his counterparts, above all the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev,...
Astana Drifts Away From EU-Favored Energy Projects
Gas and oil supplies to energy-hungry Europe have always featured as the key topic in talks between Astana and EU officials, concerning Kazakhstan's OSCE chairmanship in 2010. Stifled by the...
Kazakhstan Balances NATO and Pro-Russian Alliances
On April 21 Kazakhstan's Defense Minister Daniyal Akhmetov announced the country's refusal to participate in the NATO military exercises in Georgia. Cooperative Longbow-Cooperative Lancer 2009 was scheduled for May 6...
Kazakhstan’s Transport Policy Faces Political Dilemma
Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev on his recent visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) praised China's involvement in an important joint $7.5 billion transnational road construction project as an example...
Nazarbayev Embarks on Foreign Intelligence Reform
On February 17 Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev issued a decree ordering the government to set up the Syrbar foreign intelligence agency. The presidential press service told journalists that Syrbar would...
Critics Question Kazakhstan’s Membership in Collective Rapid Response Force
The Kazakh Interior Ministry recently released a detailed press account of an armed clash between Arlan anti-terrorist detachment and a group of "extremist forces" in the Zelenov District of West...
Kazakh Opposition Criticizes Half-Hearted Democratic Reform Efforts
As Kazakhstan’s term of chairmanship of the Organization for Cooperation and Security in Europe (OSCE) draws near, state officials have intensified diplomatic maneuvering, constantly shuttling between Western capitals and Astana....
Kazakhstan Offers Military Airfield to NATO Forces in Afghanistan
Recently, members of the Kazakhstan Senate ratified two agreements allowing U.S. and NATO coalition forces to use Almaty airport as an emergency airfield for fighter planes flying on missions to...
Tension Mounts Between Tashkent and Astana as Uzbekistan Slams the EAEC Door
Uzbekistan’s recent decision to leave the Moscow-orchestrated Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC) hardly surprised anyone in the Kazakh Foreign Ministry who was familiar with Uzbek President Islom Karimov’s constantly changing attitudes...
WESTERN INERTIA FUELS RUSSIAN DRIVE IN CENTRAL ASIA
On a visit to Astana on October 5, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced to the press in a conspicuously diplomatic tone that the United States had no intention...
ARE KAZAKHSTAN’S ECONOMIC BONDS WITH GEORGIA THE PRICE OF STRONGER TIES WITH RUSSIA?
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev used the annual meeting of border regions of Kazakhstan and Russia in Aktobe (western Kazakhstan) on September 22 to confer with Kazak President Nursultan Nazarbayev, one...
SOUTH OSSETIA TESTS KAZAKHSTAN’S FOREIGN POLICY PRIORITIES
Speaking at the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Moscow on September 5, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev went out of his way to show his country’s commitment to this...
NAZARBAYEV PLAYS DOUBLE GAME ON SOUTH OSSETIA
As leaders of Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, China, and Russia, gathered in Dushanbe on August 29, the least thing that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev could...
KAZAKHSTAN HOSTS OSCE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
The 17th session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly hosted by Kazakhstan in Astana from June 29 to July 3 is generally seen as an outstanding diplomatic victory for Kazakhstan on...
WHAT WILL RUSSIA GAIN FROM KAZAKHSTAN’S OSCE CHAIRMANSHIP?
As Kazakhstan’s long-awaited term of chairmanship of the OSCE draws near, Astana is stepping up its multifaceted ties with the West, disregarding the painful reaction of the Kremlin to any...
DMITRY MEDVEDEV LOOKS FAR BEYOND AN ENERGY ALLIANCE WITH ASTANA
Apparently, there was a great deal of political calculation aimed at sobering up adamant western leaders to the hard-line stance of the post-Putin Kremlin in Dmitry Medvedev’s first foreign trip...
KOSOVA ISSUE POINTS TO RUSSIAN SWAY OVER ASTANA
Recent developments in Kosova have become a litmus test for Central Asian states, indicating the degree of their independence from Moscow. The Kazakh Foreign Ministry hastened to issue a statement...
FREQUENT CRASHES CAST DOUBT ON RUSSIAN-MADE JETS IN KAZAKH AIR FORCE
On the morning of February 12, a MiG-29 fighter jet from the Kazakh Air Force crashed while landing at a military airfield in Almaty region. Just seconds before the plane...
NAZARBAYEV’S MESSAGE TO HIS PEOPLE FUELS CONTROVERSIES
The most salient features of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s February 6 address to the nation, presented at a joint session of government and parliament and broadcast on two national television...
ASTANA SHIFTS ACCENT FROM POLITICAL REFORM TO ECONOMIC STABILITY
On January 23, addressing members of the Political Council of the ruling Nur Otan party, Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev announced several key personnel changes. Bakhitzhan Zhumagulov, the deputy chairman of...
CHINA SECURES NEW ACCESS TO KAZAKH OIL
On December 11 Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Massimov and Ma Fu Tsai, deputy chairman of the Chinese State Council Committee on Energy, arrived at Kenkiyak, a small settlement in Aktobe...
GODFATHER OF KAZMUNAYGAZ JOINS TOP ECHELONS OF POWER
On December 6 Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev appointed Nurlan Balgimbayev to be his advisor. Shortly before the announcement, a new wave of administrative reforms replaced several regional governors and top...
EUROPEAN ENERGY CONSUMERS LIKELY TO LOSE KAZAKHSTAN BATTLE TO “ORIENTAL BLOC”
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s November 21-23 Balkan tour, which came on the heels of his trip to the United Arab Emirates and Syria (see EDM, November 15), symbolically demonstrated Kazakhstan’s...
KAZAKHSTAN ADJUSTS ITS RELATIONS WITH ARAB STATES
On November 5 Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev arrived in Damascus for a three-day visit. Both Nazarbayev and his Syrian counterpart, Bashar al-Assad, seemed satisfied with the talks, which covered investments,...
KAZAKH COURT DECISION AGAINST CHEVRON CARRIES POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS
The unprecedented tough line taken by the Kazakh government in its row with the Italian Agip consortium may set an ominous precedent for prolonged confrontations with other Western companies. In...
PRODI VISITS NAZARBAYEV TO SETTLE DIFFERENCES ON KASHAGAN
On October 8 Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi arrived in Astana, Kazakhstan, to consult with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Prime Minister Karim Masimov in a bid to ease tensions...
ASTANA CAUGHT UNPREPARED FOR WHEAT SHORTAGE
The steeply rising price of bread in all regions of Kazakhstan, coming in the wake of controversial parliamentary elections, has fueled popular discontent with the ruling Nur Otan party and...
KAZAKHSTAN SEEKS FULL CONTROL OVER KASHAGAN OIL TAP
The ongoing dispute between the Kazakh government and the Italian Agip KCO oil consortium reached a critical point when Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Masimov, addressing the second Eurasian Energy Forum...
KAZAKH PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS RESURRECT COMMUNIST-STYLE ONE-PARTY RULE
The August 18 snap elections for Kazakhstan’s national parliament and local assemblies brought, as predicted, a landslide victory for President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s Nur Otan party. With amazing speed, on the...
KAZAKH INTERIOR MINISTRY HUMILIATED BY AUSTRIAN REFUSAL TO EXTRADITE RAKHAT ALIEV
The scandal around Rakhat Aliev, the runaway former son-in-law of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Kazakhstan’s former ambassador to Vienna, shows no sign of subsiding. Astana asked the Austrian government...
SON-IN-LAW’S CASE RAISES NAZARBAYEV’S DOMESTIC APPROVAL
As the political scandal around Nurbank takes new twists, it is becoming evident that Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev is trying to use this highly embarrassing criminal case involving his runaway...
KAZAKH PRESIDENT’S SON-IN-LAW FACES CRIMINAL CHARGES
On May 28 the Interior Ministry of Kazakhstan’s spokesman, Baghdat Kozhakhmetov, told journalists that Rakhat Aliev, Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Austria, was on the run from the law and he has...