JAN. 15 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — French DIY retailer Leroy Merlin will open its first shop in Kazakhstan in 2018. Construction work will start in Q4 2016. The new store will be located in the Aport Mall, Kazakhstan’s largest mall, on the outskirts of Almaty. The company said it will invest 10b tenge ($27m) in the shop.
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(News report from Issue No. 264, published on Jan. 22 2016)
JAN. 18 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Two Georgian nationals from the Pankisi Gorge in the north of the country have died in Syria fighting for the Islamic radical group IS, media reported quoting intelligence services. The Pankisi Gorge is a predominantly Muslim enclave. Georgia’s security forces have said that at least 50 men from the Pankisi Gorge have joined IS in Syria.
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(News report from Issue No. 264, published on Jan. 22 2016)
JAN. 19 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – An Uzbek government delegation, lead by foreign minister Abdulaziz Kamilov, travelled to Washington to meet with its US counterpart, part of an annual bilateral process. At the end of last year, the US lifted Uzbekistan’s human rights ranking after the United Nations recorded improvements in its cotton picking system. Mr Kamilov met with US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Nisha Biswal.
JAN. 22 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) –
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(News report from Issue No. 264, published on Jan. 22 2016)
JAN. 15 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Jersey-based Highland Gold Mining said it appointed a new CEO to oversee its operations in Russia and Kyrgyzstan. Highland’s operations are mostly focused in Russia, but it is exploring the Unkurtash gold mine, located near Jalal-Abad in Kyrgyzstan. Denis Alexandrov, formerly Highland’s finance director, takes over as CEO from Valery Oyf who remains a director.
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(News report from Issue No. 264, published on Jan. 22 2016)
JAN. 19 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Policemen in the city of Ferghana told the Uzbek language service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that they are not receiving their full salaries. The information stream from Uzbekistan is weak but evidence has been growing that prices are rising and shortages of good growing. The Uzbek government has not commented.
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(News report from Issue No. 264, published on Jan. 22 2016)
JAN. 21 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azercell, one of the largest telecoms companies in Azerbaijan, said it will lay off 60 workers, around 8% of its employees in the country. Azercell is TeliaSonera’s subsidiary company in Azerbaijan. It said in a statement that the worsening economic conditions in the country are directly affecting the company’s financial health.
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(News report from Issue No. 264, published on Jan. 22 2016)
JAN. 13 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The authorities in Azerbaijan detained at least 50 people during a police operation in the district of Nardaran, 30km outside Baku, a follow-up to police raids on so-called Islamic terrorists last year that killed at least eight people. Nardaran is considered one of the most religiously conservative areas of Azerbaijan with many people living there looking to Iran for support and guidance. Azerbaijan is, officially, a secular country.
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(News report from Issue No. 263, published on Jan. 15 2016)
JAN. 15 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Protests in Azerbaijan’s peripheral regions could be soothed only with a resolute measure, the government thinks. President Ilham Aliyev decided to strike out VAT from flour and wheat products, one of the chief demands of the dozens of protesters that took the streets on Jan. 12-13 in several towns around the country.
The question, however, remains — will this one-off measure placate emotions?
Azerbaijan always had a fiery population, ready to manifest their discontent. The recent crackdown on freedom of expression and the virtual – and factual – suppression of any opposition led many to think that Azerbaijan would not allow the public to have a voice any longer.
Azerbaijanis have instead showed their, very real, anger. Video footage from opposition sources shows protesters and police clashing.
The economic downturn is threatening stability across the South Caucasus and Central Asia and poses a challenge to the authorities. How they, and how the protesters respond, is critical.
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(Editorial from Issue No. 263, published on Jan. 15 2016)
JAN. 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan’s economy grew at 3.5% in 2015 compared to 4% in 2014, the state statistics committee said. The statistics committee said that the main reason for the slowdown was an 8% drop in production at the Kumtor mine. Production slowed at Kumtor, which is owned by Toronto-listed Centerra Gold, when it enlarged the mine.
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(News report from Issue No. 263, published on Jan. 15 2016)
JAN. 13 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Tsesnabank, one of the largest banks in Kazakhstan, bought an 83% stake in Russian Plus Bank, after both countries’ Central Banks gave the green light for the deal. According to Russian law, Tsesnabank will have to submit another offer for the remaining 16.7% of Plus Bank over the next days. UAE-based Linex Global owns 14.7% of Plus Bank. Tsesnabank has increased its stake over the past six months. In June 2015, it owned 20% of Plus Bank. It has since bought out several other minority shareholders. Adilbek Dzhaksybekov, mayor of Astana, owns Tsesnabank.
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(News report from Issue No. 263, published on Jan. 15 2016)