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Kazakh economist Rassul Rysmambetov has proposed increasing accountability for senior civil servants by introducing a 15-year ban on leaving the country after stepping down from office. He argued that top officials should have to live with the outcomes of the systems and policies they helped create.

Proposal to tighten accountability

Speaking on the Check Point Talk YouTube podcast, Rysmambetov said Kazakhstan needs to improve the performance of top managers in the quasi-public sector and senior government officials to curb corruption and capital flight. One of the key issues, he said, is that officials can...

A robot developed by Sony AI has defeated elite table tennis players in a notable step for robotics in competitive sports. The system, called Ace, won three out of five matches against elite opponents but lost both matches against professional players, winning only one game across those contests, The Guardian reported.

Ace operates using an eight-jointed robotic arm mounted on a movable base and relies on multiple cameras positioned around the court. By analyzing visual data, including the ball’s logo, the system estimates spin and trajectory in milliseconds.

The results, obtained under official competition rules, highlight progress in a...

Nightclubs and bars in Almaty have begun installing “smart” cameras that analyze patrons and help identify minors, law enforcement officials said. The effort is intended to strengthen oversight of teenagers amid a reported rise in youth-related incidents, according to the KTK television channel.

Police say school-age children are increasingly involved in late-night activity, including staying out after hours, getting into fights, and engaging in other risky behavior.

Facial recognition in nightlife venues

According to authorities, facial recognition cameras have already been installed in 20 entertainment venues across the city. If a minor is identified, they will be taken...

Relatives of 22-year-old Kazakh citizen Yernur Almakhan, who was sentenced to life in prison in Dubai, say they do not believe he is guilty and suspect he may have been framed, according to local outlet Ak Zhaiyk.

Yernur’s relatives were unaware of the charges for an extended period and only learned of the verdict in April 2026. The ruling was issued by a court of first instance on March 18. An appeal has already been filed, with a hearing scheduled for April 27.

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the case and said the verdict has...

Domestic trade remains one of the largest sectors of Kazakhstan’s economy, accounting for 19.2% of GDP at the end of 2025. However, the sector showed signs of cooling in early 2026, with growth slowing to 4.8% in the first quarter, down from 6.3% a year earlier.

Wholesale trade drives overall growth

Wholesale trade remained the primary growth driver. In real terms, it expanded 5.8% year over year to 10.8 trillion tenge (approx. $23 billion) by the end of the first quarter, according to the Bureau of National Statistics. The segment accounted for 67.6% of total domestic trade turnover.

Celebrated annually on April 23, National Book Day honors Kazakhstan’s literary heritage. Its mission is to foster a culture of reading, support domestic authors, and preserve the nation’s intellectual and cultural identity.

Read also: Inside the library behind bars: The most popular books in prison.

Prominent Kazakh scholar Akhmet Baitursynuly described the book as «a core instrument for knowledge dissemination» and argued that the pursuit of knowledge should come through producing books that share learning among Kazakhs.

Many thinkers across history have reflected on the enduring value of books...

More than 1,300 glaciers in Tajikistan — accounting for about 60% of Central Asia’s water resources — have completely melted, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon said at the Astana summit, warning that ecosystem degradation is fueling abnormal dust storms that now last up to seven months a year.

Accelerating glacier loss threatens water security

According to Rahmon, more than 1,300 of the country’s roughly 14,000 glaciers have already disappeared. The process is accelerating, disrupting the regional water balance and increasing the risk of natural disasters across Central Asia.

«Up to...

A video circulating on social media shows a camel wandering through a trash-strewn zhailau (seasonal pasture) in the Mangystau region. Officials said plastic bags and bottles were blown from a nearby landfill and pledged to clean up the area as soon as possible.

The incident occurred in the village of Bayandy in the Munaily district, near a solid waste landfill.

The regional Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management said...

Kazakhstan has become one of the top three countries for the Russian messaging app Max outside of Russia. Users are actively downloading the app to stay in touch with relatives and friends in Russia.

According to Izvestia, Kazakhstan is among the top three countries by number of registrations, following Uzbekistan and Belarus. Currently, around 7 million foreign citizens use the messenger, 90% of whom are CIS residents.

Uzbekistan leads the way with 2.3 million users. Belarus ranks second, followed by Kazakhstan with 1.2 million registrations. Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan round out the top five.

Users outside of Russia make approximately...

According to Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, his country incurs high costs to maintain water resources, while neighboring states use them without compensation. Speaking at the Regional Environmental Summit (RES 2026) in Astana, he proposed new water distribution mechanisms under which recipient countries would pay either in fossil fuels or money.

Global warming and melting glaciers

As Japarov noted, Kyrgyzstan has been facing the growing impact of climate change, including a threefold increase in natural disasters over the past five years. By 2060, the country could lose up to 80% of its glaciers, a development he described as potentially catastrophic...

South Korean authorities have concluded that a mid-air collision between two fighter jets in 2021 occurred after pilots attempted to take photos and videos during a flight mission, the BBC reported.

The incident took place near the central city of Daegu, according to a report by the Board of Audit and Inspection. Both pilots survived without injuries, but the aircraft were damaged, resulting in repair costs of $596,000.

The report found that one pilot, who was flying the wingman aircraft, began taking photos with his personal mobile phone while returning to base. The lead aircraft’s pilot, aware of the...

On April 13, 2026, the Center for Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan was officially recognized as the largest museum of Islamic civilization in the world by Guinness World Records.

The ceremony was attended by Guinness World Records official representative Sheida Subashi, who presented the award to members of the Center’s Scientific Council, as well as to the architects, planners, designers and builders who contributed to the implementation of this large-scale project.

The key factor behind the Guinness World Records decision was the center’s size. The three-story, Oriental-style building is 161 meters long and 118 meters wide. Its dome is 65 meters...

Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov said the country will not supply oil to a refinery in Schwedt via the Druzhba pipeline in May.

«The Russian side claims it lacks the technical capability to pump Kazakhstan’s oil via the Druzhba pipeline to Germany. This is most likely due to recent attacks on Russian infrastructure,» he stated, adding that this was his assumption.

He said that oil transit to the Schwedt refinery is not planned for May. Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry later confirmed this in an official statement. Kazakhstan typically exports oil to Germany via the Atyrau-Samara pipeline...

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev delivered a pointed critique of the global order during the Res 2026 Regional Environmental Summit in Astana.

Tokayev said the United Nations Charter should be treated as a single, comprehensive document — not a set of principles applied selectively, particularly in the context of military conflicts.

«The UN Charter is not a menu, and it cannot be approached by cherry-picking,» Tokayev said, using a metaphor to underscore his argument.

He emphasized that a selective approach to international law is especially dangerous in matters of war and peace. When countries...

South Korean police have asked prosecutors to request an arrest warrant for Bang Si-hyuk, founder of Hybe and the executive behind K-pop group BTS, over allegations of fraudulent trading linked to the company’s stock market debut, the BBC reported.

Authorities allege Bang misled investors in 2019 by suggesting that a public listing of Hybe was unlikely, while preparations for an initial public offering were already underway. The company was later listed on South Korea’s Kospi exchange in October 2020. Investigators say the actions resulted in approximately $136 million in gains.

Bang has denied the allegations and maintains that his...

Despite the continued dominance of the state in Uzbekistan’s banking sector, private players — particularly young digital banks — are expanding more rapidly. The gradual denationalization of the economy is also expected to revive the local stock market, which currently lacks attractive instruments for investors.

Assets of Uzbekistan’s credit institutions rose 20.5% by the end of 2025 to 937 trillion sums (about $77 billion). According to Kursiv Research, that equals 50.7% of the country’s GDP, up 0.1 percentage point year over year. Microfinance organizations grew 50%, and pawnshops expanded 34.6%, but their combined share remains small...

On Monday, Apple announced that Tim Cook will step down as chief executive officer, a role he has held since 2011, succeeding co-founder Steve Jobs. He will be replaced by John Ternus, senior vice president of Hardware Engineering, who is set to take over on Sept. 1, 2026.

Despite spending nearly his entire career at Apple, Ternus remains relatively unknown outside the company. A mechanical engineering graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, he joined Apple in the late 1990s after a brief stint at a virtual reality startup. He later rose through Apple’s hardware engineering division, most recently overseeing...

The price of Kazakhstan’s CPC Blend crude has been declining on global markets.

According to the latest data, the benchmark traded at $114.47 on Friday but fell to $112.23 on Monday, April 20. The drop suggests shifting supply-and-demand dynamics and increased investor caution.

Middle East tensions weigh on market

Ongoing tensions in the Middle East continue to influence oil price stability, contributing to volatility in global energy markets.

Over the past month, CPC Blend prices have fallen significantly. About a month ago, the price peaked at $130.10 before steadily declining to around $112.

That represents a drop of...

When traveling within their home country, Kazakhstanis are increasingly opting to save on accommodations by staying with relatives or friends, according to 2025 data from the Bureau of National Statistics.

Over the past year, more than 8.45 million domestic tourists traveled within the country and stayed overnight. Of those, about 5.3 million chose free accommodations with relatives or friends.

Commercial hotels and inns hosted about 1.2 million guests. Another 973,000 travelers opted to rent private apartments or houses.

Meanwhile, about 307,000 Kazakhstanis stayed in domestic sanatoriums (or health resorts), 118,000 chose country houses, and...

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the assumption that Russia would abandon a new offensive out of fear of Donald Trump is not a sufficient security guarantee.

Zelenskyy made the remarks in an interview with ICTV, according to RBC-Ukraine.

Concerns over lack of international presence

Zelenskyy said the absence of a meaningful international partner presence along the line of contact leaves open the question of how to contain Russia.

He also addressed the U.S. position that Moscow might hesitate to escalate due to the prospect of a strong response from Trump.

«President Trump has another two and...

Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh arrived in Astana on a state visit Tuesday.

Following the signing of intergovernmental agreements, Khürelsükh and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev held a joint media briefing, where Tokayev said the countries had agreed to explore building a highway connecting Kazakhstan and Mongolia.

Highway project under review

Tokayev said the project would require comprehensive analysis. At this stage, the two sides agreed to establish an intergovernmental task force to study its feasibility.

He said the potential launch of such a route could significantly boost trade ties.

«The integration of the transport and logistics potential...

Russia will provide Kazakhstan with an intergovernmental loan for the construction of a nuclear power plant (NPP) near Lake Balkhash, covering 85% of the total cost of Rosatom’s 2.4-gigawatt project, according to Almasadam Satkaliyev, head of the Atomic Energy Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

He also confirmed that the total cost of the NPP will be approximately $15 billion. Thus, Russia is expected to provide a $12.75 billion loan, while Kazakhstan will contribute the remaining $2.25 billion toward the construction of its first NPP.

«This will be an intergovernmental loan. Several agreements are currently being developed: one on the...

According to Askarbek Yertayev, minister of labor and social protection of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the country welcomes investors, entrepreneurs and in-demand specialists. For this reason, it has introduced simplified entry procedures for these categories of foreigners.

As the official noted, Kazakhstan’s migration policy differentiates entrants based on the purpose of their visit, separating labor migration from permanent relocation.

This approach ensures that Kazakhstan’s economy remains open to qualified specialists.

«Investors and specialists in in-demand professions can enter the country for employment under a simplified procedure. We have an order from the Ministry of Labor that...

Kazakhstan has chosen a working name for its second nuclear power plant — the «Moiynkum» NPP. Like the first plant, it is planned to be located near Lake Balkhash. This was announced by Almasadam Satkaliyev, chairman of the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Atomic Energy.

As he noted, three potential construction sites are currently being considered. The plant is expected to consist of two power units, each with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts. Authorities are also negotiating with potential technology suppliers.

Satkaliyev added that the Chinese company CNPC is being considered as a priority partner for the...