Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan's record in nuclear diplomacy, including giving up its Soviet-era arsenal and hosting disarmament talks, is being held up as a rare workable model for resolving disputes over Iran's uranium stockpile. Analysts argue Astana's experience in negotiating verification and enrichment issues could help, as technical and political obstacles stall negotiations over Iran's nuclear programme.

Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has called for renewed negotiations among nuclear-armed states, marking 35 years since the closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. He warned that global arms-control safeguards are weakening and urged world powers to return to the negotiating table, drawing on Kazakhstan's history as the site of hundreds of Soviet nuclear tests.

Kazakhstan is positioning itself as a possible technical partner should renewed Iran nuclear talks focus on how enriched uranium is handled. The proposal would give Astana a diplomatic role in a dispute involving Iran and the IAEA, drawing on its own experience as a former nuclear-armed state with established nonproliferation credentials and uranium expertise.

Kazakhstan has appointed Myrzakhmetov as its new defense minister, a move announced in the capital Astana. The appointment places a new figure at the head of the Central Asian nation's armed forces and security establishment. Coverage so far has been limited to the official announcement, with little immediate detail on his background or the reasons for the change in military leadership.

Archaeologists in southern Kazakhstan have uncovered an ancient burial containing the remains of a woman with a fatal skull injury, prompting questions about whether she was murdered. The find sheds light on violence in ancient communities of the region and is drawing attention to how such injuries were inflicted and what they reveal about burial practices.