The Week in Kazakhstan: Take It Lightly

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and his Uzbek counterpart Shavkhat Mirziyoyev visited a new mosque built in the southern city of Turkestan on May 15.The mosque, billed as “a personal gift” from Mirziyoyev for what Kazakhstan calls “the spiritual capital of the Turkic world.” A 2023 investigation revealed that the family of shadow businessman Khabibula Abdukadyr was involved in the construction.Tokayev appointed on May 8 Murat Yergeshbayev as the new governor of the southern Kyzylorda region.The former MP replaced Nurlybek Nalibayev, who was named deputy Prime Minister on May 6.The post of deputy PM was left empty by the departure of Roman Sklyar, who was named head of the Presidential Administration on May 5, replacing Aibek Dadebai.Adilet, a new political party, held its first congress in Astana on May 7.It boasted endorsements of around 10,000 signatories and picked Dadebai as the chairman.After his dismissal as the head of the Presidential Administration, presidential aide Aibek Smadiyarov said that Tokayev asked Dadebai to “do some political work.” Environment Kazakhstan is set to establish a national operator responsible for handling nuclear waste.On May 13, the Majilis, the lower chamber of Parliament, approved a bill that would also ban the storage of radioactive waste produced abroad.The Stepnogorsk Mining and Chemical Combine, a subsidiary of Russia’s Rosatom, which owns a 49% stake in two of the largest uranium mines in Kazakhstan, will face fines regarding its financial obligations related to past environmental violations.The company operates lots 6 and 7 at the Budenovskoye field in the Sozak district in the southern Turkestan region.