Astana—Sir Norman meets Pyongyang
50 images Created 22 May 2009
Sir Norman meets Pyongyang: Kazakhstan's new capital Astana (in-between known as Nur-Sultan after former President Nursultan Nazarbaev) is a mushrooming conglomerate of modern architecture, fueled by the Central Asian republic's wealth in natural resources.
When Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev decided to move the capital from Almaty to Astana in 1997, it sure wasn't because of the climate: the difference between plus forty degrees Celsius in summer and minus forty in winter is a world record.
It was rather the strategically favourable situation in the centre of the country--further away from the Chinese, regarded with distrust, and nearer to long-time ally Russia--and the abundance of construction sites at this inhospitable location, a necessity for the President's ambitious urban visions.
When Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev decided to move the capital from Almaty to Astana in 1997, it sure wasn't because of the climate: the difference between plus forty degrees Celsius in summer and minus forty in winter is a world record.
It was rather the strategically favourable situation in the centre of the country--further away from the Chinese, regarded with distrust, and nearer to long-time ally Russia--and the abundance of construction sites at this inhospitable location, a necessity for the President's ambitious urban visions.
