  Kazakhstan's capital city Astana officially renamed Nur-sultan March 23, 2019 - 16:00 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Kazakhstan's capital city Astana has been renamed Nur-sultan after the country's new President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a decree on the renaming in honor of his predecessor Nursultan Nazarbayev, Xinhua reports. The decree published on the presidential website on Saturday, March 23 took effect immediately. The Kazakh parliament on Wednesday approved a bill to rename the capital after Nazarbayev at a joint session of its two houses. Earlier on Wednesday, Tokayev was sworn in as Kazakhstan's president following Nazarbayev's resignation. After his inauguration, Tokayev proposed to rename the Kazakh capital without a referendum. Nazarbayev had served as Kazakhstan's president for nearly three decades since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. He remains the head of the Central Asian country's Security Council, leader of the ruling Nur Otan party and a member of the Constitutional Council. Nazarbayev announced his decision to step down on Tuesday.   Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads.   Partner news |  Latest news Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims  Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide.Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed.Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham).Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |
