JULY 7 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Remittances to Uzbekistan from workers in Russia decreased by nearly 10% in the first quarter of the year, compared to the same period in 2013, media reported quoting the Central Bank. This is roughly similar to figures reported by other countries in the former Soviet Union and reflect Russia’s weakened economic state.
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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 2 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Concerned about possible unrest connected with electricity price increases, Armenian president Serzh Sargsyan has ordered his policy chiefs to investigate whether it can soften the price rises for less well-off families, media reported.
Last month Armenia announced that it would increase the price for electricity by 10% form Aug. 1, its first price increase in two years.
Opposition politicians have said that the price increase will trigger inflation across the country and that this is just the first of several price planned price rises.
Armenia’s government has already had to negotiate through a difficult year.
A government resigned because of public unhappiness over its pension reform plans, economic growth estimates have been downgraded because of sanctions on Russia and now an electricity price increase threatens to erode the government’s popularity further.
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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 7 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan finalised a deal with Canada’s Bombardier aircraft maker to buy 10 Q400 passenger aircraft for $230m for its new domestic airline.
The Q400 is a 70 person twin-propeller airplane, designed for short range flights.
The size of the deal underlines Kazakhstan’s spending power and also its drive to build an airline specifically to service its domestic air routes.
Domestic transport is one sector that the Kazakh government has ploughed cash into over the past few years, specifically upgrading its rail and flight network.
“Each aircraft cost $23m. In March and April 2015 five or six aircraft will be delivered to Kazakhstan. From then on, they will start to operate domestic flights,” media quoted Nurjan Shakirov, head of the newly incorporated Air Kazakhstan, as saying.
This is, of course, good news for Kazakh air travels as well as for business and industry. It’s unclear, though, what impact this new airline will have on Air Astana, the country’s current flag carrier. Officials have said that Air Astana will concentrate on international flights and major regional routes, such as Almaty to Astana, while Air
Kazakhstan will connect less frequent domestic routes.
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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 7 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will visit Dushanbe on Sept. 12/13 during a meeting of the shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the China and Russia led Central Asia military alliance. Tajikistan has close cultural and economic ties with Iran.
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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 7 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia’s richest man and leader of the coalition that defeated former president Mikheil Saakashvili in three consecutive elections, will host a talk show, media reported. This is important as it gives Mr Bidzina, who is a former Georgian PM, a direct voice to ordinary Georgians.
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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 4 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Turkmenistan’s President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said the notoriously stand-offish country would open up an embassy in Bishkek, the second new diplomatic outpost it has announced in the last few days.
Last month, Mr Berdymukhamedov said Turkmenistan would also open an office in Tbilisi. The common thread is that these are both countries in the former Soviet Union that Turkmenistan is now partnering with on energy projects.
In Georgia, Turkmenistan is interested in utilising the South Caucasus energy corridor to Europe. In Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan sees an increasingly important partner for sending gas to China, its key client.
Over the past few years, Turkmenistan has transformed itself into a major gas exporter. It has become rich and increasingly open. As well as funding various follies, such as an Olympic stadium and building white marble facades around its government buildings, some funds have gone into burnishing Turkmenistan’s image abroad. This includes opening new embassies.
Mr Berdymukhamedov’s predecessor, Saparmurat Niyazov, was a notorious recluse. Part of Mr Berdymukhamedov’s recent success has been his willingness to open up to the world, a strategy that appears to be continuing.
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(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan, or Almaty to be precise, has made it into the final round of three to host the 2022 Winter Olympics.
This in itself is an achievement. The other two finalists have long Olympic pedigree. Beijing hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 2008 and Oslo has already hosted the Winter Games in 1952. In 1994, Lillehammer, in central Norway, also hosted the Winter Olympic Games.
In the last Winter Olympic Games in Sochi earlier this year Norway won 11 gold medals and China won three. Kazakhstan, by comparison, won just one bronze medal in ice skating.
Almaty may be a rank outsider in terms of Olympic pedigree but it is still an attractive option for the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC wants to break into new territories for its Winter Games. The options are slightly limited by the weather and the expensive, exclusive nature of winter sports.
Almaty ticks a good number of boxes. It is keen, can pay for the facilities and has plenty of snow.
Of course there are pitfalls too. Kazakhstan’s human rights record and commitment to democracy is patchy and many of the facilities needed to host the Winter Olympics are unbuilt. Also, with the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the IOC may decide that having another one so soon in the former Soviet Union is just too much for everybody.
The IOC decides on its 2022 winter venue on July 31 2015. Almaty has just over a year to put together a bid that could finally bring the Olympics to Kazakhstan.
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Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 3 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Police arrested the former mayor of Tbilisi, Gigi Ugulava, for money laundering. Supporters of Mr Ugulava denounced the allegations as politically motivated and part of a plot to blacken the reputation of senior officials linked to the administration of former president Mikheil Saakashvili.
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Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) criticised Azerbaijan for giving two bloggers prison sentences this yea. OSCE media chief Dunja Mijatovic said: “The list of individuals imprisoned in Azerbaijan for exercising their right to free speech is growing very rapidly.”
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Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
JULY 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The cost of buying a home in Kazakhstan continues to rise. The latest figures from the national statistics agency showed house prices had increased by 21% in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2014. Policymakers worry that the Kazakh housing market is hitting a bubble.
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Copyright ©The Conway Bulletin — all rights reserved
(News report from Issue No. 192, published on July 9 2014)
