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Finance ministers from the G7 and several other major economies met in Washington to discuss ways to reduce their dependence on rare earths and other critical minerals from China, including possible price-stabilization mechanisms and new partnerships to develop alternative supplies, Reuters reported.

The meeting, convened by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, included officials from Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and the U.S., as well as Australia, Mexico, South Korea and India.

Participants said the talks focused on securing and diversifying supply chains for critical minerals, which are essential for defense technologies, semiconductors, renewable energy equipment and batteries. China...

Exports of Kazakhstani oil through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) saw a significant drop in January 2026. According to Bloomberg, shipment volumes fell around 45% from the planned level due to a combination of factors, including bad weather, protracted maintenance and the consequences of unmanned aerial vehicle attacks.

Traders say that between 800,000 and 900,000 barrels a day of CPC Blend are expected to be exported in January. Of the initial plan of 45 shipments, at least 21 were cancelled. The supply shortage has already resulted in a price increase — Kazakhstani oil is trading at...

Production of camel milk ice cream has been launched in the Almaty region of Kazakhstan. The project is part of the «Kazakhtanu» cultural and educational program, which focuses on reinventing national traditions. The project involves processing camel milk and using it in desserts. The product line includes over 20 flavors and is made from natural ingredients.

Azangul Albosyn, the entrepreneur behind the project, is a former lawyer. She used to live and work in neighboring China but, as an ethnic Kazakh, decided to return to Kazakhstan about 15 years ago. Together with her husband, Zharkyn Zhumagazy, she began developing a...

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he would impose 25% tariffs on all business activities with the U.S. for countries conducting business with Iran, Reuters reported.

Tariffs

«Effective immediately, any country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a tariff of 25% on any and all business conducted with the United States of America,» Trump wrote in a post.

He described the order as «final and conclusive» but did not specify how it would be implemented or on what legal basis.

According to the press service of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the final decision on constitutional reform in Kazakhstan will be made through a nationwide referendum. The statement came during a meeting on parliamentary and constitutional reform in the country.

«The head of state underlined the need to take into account all opinions and initiatives. The president also stated that the final decision on constitutional reform will be made by citizens during a national referendum,» the Akorda said in a statement.

During the meeting, State Counselor Erlan Karin said a working group had already discussed...

Kazakhstani producer Maira Karsakbayeva shared a funny and heartwarming story about actor and former professional boxer Mike Tyson’s visit to Astana. Kursiv LifeStyle explains why the star had to stop a police convoy during his journey.

In 2010, the legendary athlete was invited to the Astana Action Film Festival. At the time, Tyson’s participation was organized in cooperation with a Hollywood producer, while the invitation was initiated by Timur Bekmambetov, the director of the event. Karsakbayeva negotiated through Tyson’s wife, Kiki, with whom she remains in touch.

Upon arrival, Tyson went to dinner with his family...

Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok has gained global popularity. However, some of the attention surrounding it recently might be linked to its ability to generate sexually explicit images on the X platform, including «undressed» images of public figures. As a result, some regulators in Europe and Asia are taking action against the platform, Reuters reported.

The European Commission introduced a «retention order» last year requiring X to preserve internal documents and information related to future changes to its recommendation algorithms until Dec. 31, 2025. Following new concerns about sexually explicit AI-generated images, the Commission extended the order by...

Kazakhstan’s top-ranked tennis player, Alexander Bublik, reached the world’s top 10 for the first time in his career after winning the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open 2026.

The 28-year-old from Gatchina, Russia, representing Kazakhstan since 2016, climbed one spot in the rankings by moving past Jack Draper, whom Bublik defeated in the 2025 French Open round of 16. At the 2026 Australian Open, the Kazakhstani athlete will be seeded 10th.

There were no other changes among the world’s top-ranked players. Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner lead the rankings. On Jan...

Meta is seeking a market specialist for Kazakhstan. The candidate is expected to have in-depth knowledge of the Kazakh market, be fluent in Kazakh and Russian and be ready to focus on real-time crises related to Kazakhstan. The position will be based in Dublin.

The vacancy is part of Global Response Operations, a Meta division responsible for handling real-time crises and identifying emerging risks.

The successful applicant will be expected to handle content and situations in which standard systems and solutions are insufficient and where local expertise and an understanding of linguistic, cultural and regional specifics are required.

The...

Zaman Bank, Kazakhstan’s Islamic bank, seeks to launch Halal installment plans on online marketplaces, Diar Smagulov, deputy chairman of the management board, said in an interview with Forbes Kazakhstan.

“Establishing a marketplace is very lengthy and expensive — it took Kaspi around 10 years. Instead, we will collaborate with existing marketplaces and offer them Halal installment plans. If the project succeeds, we may even enter global platforms like Amazon in the future,” Smagulov said.

In 2026, an updated law on banks and banking activities comes into effect in Kazakhstan. It includes...

According to Zere, a Kazakh blogger living in France for 15 years, the new season of the French TV show «Pékin Express» has led to a surge in positive comments about Kazakhstan. She says she has never seen such interest in the country before.

«In France, many people simply don’t know much about Kazakhstan. But lately, one after another, people have started telling me about Kazakhstan with great enthusiasm. At first, I couldn’t understand where it was all coming from,» the blogger said.

The show, which airs on the French TV channel M6, follows...

U.S. President Donald Trump posted a Wikipedia page mock-up of himself as Acting President of Venezuela on Truth Social.

Donald Trump

Meanwhile, the real Wikipedia page does not include this information and makes no mention of the U.S. president being an acting or interim president of Venezuela. Trump did not comment on the meme.

Venezuela

This post appeared against the backdrop of the continuing crisis in Venezuela following the arrest of the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro. Trump stated that the U.S. is ready to aid the Venezuelan people and help...

Hearings have begun at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague in a landmark case accusing Myanmar of genocide against the Rohingya Muslim minority, Reuters reported.

The case was filed with the court by Gambia in 2019, making it the first genocide case to be heard in full by the ICJ in more than a decade. Experts say the outcome may set key precedents for future genocide cases, as Rohingya victims will address an international court for the first time. Myanmar, meanwhile, has denied all the accusations.

The case centers on a 2017 military offensive...

The board of directors of Kazakhstan’s flagship carrier Air Astana is set to review the acquisition of Airbus A320neo family aircraft, according to a notice available on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) website.

The final amount of the deal has not been announced; however, it is noted that it would be 50% or more of the total balance sheet value of the company’s assets.

According to Air Astana statements, after the first three quarters of 2025, the carrier has roughly $2.2 billion in assets. In other words, the amount in question is...

A funny video from a winter fishing trip near Astana is going viral on Kaznet. The footage shows a steppe fox approaching a sled loaded with fish and trying to steal the catch. Even though the fisherman was standing nearby, the wild animal clearly didn’t seem to care.

The fisherman followed the fox as it tried to drag the sled away. He attempted to chase her off, but it stubbornly continued pulling the man’s catch toward herself, as if convinced it rightfully belonged to her. In the end, however, the attempt failed: the fisherman kept his fish and the...

Kazakh videographer Dastan Mukhamedrakhim met with renowned American actor Will Smith at an international event in Dubai and gifted him a Kazakh shapan — a traditional national coat featuring distinctive patterns.

The uploaded video shows Mukhamedrakhim going on stage, putting the garment on the Hollywood star, and taking a photo with him. Smith, for his part, responded to the gesture calmly and kindly and posed for a photo.

According to Bloomberg, Ukraine has attacked three Lukoil drilling platforms in the Caspian Sea in an effort to undermine the economic base of Russia’s war machine. The strikes targeted facilities at the Filanovsky, Korchagin and Grayfer oil fields.

Attack details

The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces has already confirmed the operation. In a Telegram post, it reported direct hits on infrastructure and said it is currently assessing the extent of the damage. The agency also noted that this was not the first attack on targets in the Caspian Sea, as similar strikes on oil infrastructure were...

The famous Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival 2026, an annual ice fishing event held in Hwacheon County, a mountainous region about 90 kilometers from Seoul, South Korea, is welcoming visitors on Jan. 10, Yonhap reported.

The fishing event is centered on the sancheoneo, a Korea-native salmonid fish species caught on the frozen Hwacheoncheon Stream. The event allows visitors to try angling through holes cut in the ice, using lures or even bare hands. The caught fish can then be cooked within the festival area and prepared as sashimi, grilled fish or steamed fish.

Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik (World No. 11), rushing to the top 10, secured his second victory in 2026. In the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open 2026, Kazakhstan’s top-ranked player defeated  Shang Juncheng (No. 406) 6-1, 7-6 (7-2).

The first set lasted 28 minutes, 17 of which Bublik spent on the first five games. Trailing 0-5, Shang was at risk of a bagel set.

The sixth game lasted longer than all the previous ones combined. In the deuce exchanges alone, the players played 13 points. No bagel set for the Kazakhstani...

President Donald Trump’s renewed push for U.S. control over Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, is gradually reshaping relations between the two allies.

Trump has argued that the U.S. needs Greenland for national and global security, despite Washington already having broad military access to the island under a 1951 defense agreement with Denmark. The U.S. also operates Pituffik Space Base there, the Pentagon’s northernmost installation.

Despite Denmark’s objections to increasingly vocal U.S. statements suggesting a takeover of Greenland by any means, and expressions of solidarity from most European nations, pressure from Washington...

A socio-economic study examining the establishment of gambling areas restricted to foreign tourists was conducted in Kazakhstan. The press service of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports revealed the study’s results.

According to the ministry, citizens of Kazakhstan will not be allowed to enter these designated areas. The boundaries of the gambling zones for foreign tourists will be designated by the regional authorities where they are located.

The surveys indicate that a majority of residents support the establishment of casinos for foreign tourists. In the Zhetysu region, 67% of respondents do not...

President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and U.S. President Donald Trump have maintained regular contact and a relationship based on mutual trust, according to Julie M. Stufft, who was confirmed as the U.S. ambassador to Kazakhstan on Oct. 7, 2025.

Ambassador Stufft said she discussed key priorities of bilateral relations with President Tokayev, noting that these efforts have the full support of President Trump. She expressed enthusiasm about expanding cooperation between the two countries and said the two leaders are expected to meet again in the near future.

Tokayev and Trump

The ambassador noted that Tokayev and Trump communicate regularly...

Traveling across the Mangystau region of western Kazakhstan can feel more like a lunar expedition than a road trip. Driving off-road in four-wheel-drive vehicles, travelers pass bleached rock formations, broad plateaus and vast empty plains that show little sign of human presence, the Washington Post reported.

The dramatic landscape, shaped over millions of years, was once submerged beneath the prehistoric Tethys Ocean. As tectonic shifts reshaped the land, erosion carved the limestone spires, mesas and domes that now define the region. Fossils, including shells and shark teeth, remain scattered across the ground.

Mangystau’s isolation is striking. During days...

Two people were shot Thursday afternoon during an encounter involving a federal agent in Portland. Local officials have called for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to pause operations in the city while investigations continue, ABC News reported.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Border Patrol agents conducted a targeted stop of a vehicle carrying two people. After agents identified themselves, the driver attempted to strike them with the vehicle, according to DHS. An agent fired a shot in response and the vehicle fled the scene.

DHS said the situation remains under investigation and that the passenger was allegedly...