Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan is a large Eurasian country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and China. The country also borders on a significant part of the Caspian Sea. Kazakhstan capital is Astana.

Almaty is the largest city in Kazakhstan and the former capital of the Republic. Astana is an important industry and cultural center of the republic, also railway auto-transport junction. In 1963 the Akatau settlement got the status of the town. The unique warming up oil pipeline is installed here. One of the largest tourist centers of Kazakhstan is Taraz, the city, standing on the “Great Silk Road”. Languages is Kazakh and Russian and religions is Muslim and Russian Orthodox. Medeo, the world-famous skating-rink, is probably the most visited and attractive site within the Almaty area.

Independence and sovereignty was proclaimed in 1991. Kazakhstan is a constitutional republic with strong presidency. The head of state is the President Nursultan Nazarbayev, first elected in 1991, then re-elected in 1995 and 1999. The higher judicial bodies are the Supreme Court and Constitutional Council.

This is a land of climatic extremes -- hot as an oven in the summer and bitterly cold in the winter. The best time to visit most of the country is April-June or September-October, when the day temperatures are cool. Hikers and mountain climbers will want to go in summer: While the rest of the country is burning up in the summer, the mountains are at their best.

Kazakhstan, the largest of the former Soviet republics in territory, excluding Russia, possesses enormous fossil fuel reserves and plentiful supplies of other minerals and metals. Astana has provided financial support to the banking sector which has been struggling with poor asset quality and large foreign loans.

Natural resources is major deposits of petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, manganese, chrome ore, nickel, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, lead, zinc, bauxite, gold, uranium. Agriculture products is grain (mostly spring wheat), cotton; livestock. Some famous Industries is oil, coal, iron ore, manganese, chromite, lead, zinc, copper, titanium, bauxite, gold, silver, phosphates, sulfur, iron and steel; tractors and other agricultural machinery, electric motors, construction materials. Exports partners is China, Germany, Russia, Italy and France.