{"id":2043,"date":"2022-01-11T14:03:10","date_gmt":"2022-01-11T15:03:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/malvinartley.com\/blog.malvinartley.com\/?p=2043"},"modified":"2022-01-16T12:37:44","modified_gmt":"2022-01-16T13:37:44","slug":"what-color-is-kazakhstan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/malvinartley.com\/blog.malvinartley.com\/2022\/01\/11\/what-color-is-kazakhstan\/","title":{"rendered":"What color is Kazakhstan?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kazakhstan in recent days has been in the midst of the biggest protests and violence it has seen since its independence in 1991, leading a few comments to call what has happened, ‘Black January’. The present violence and protests allegedly began as a result of sharp increases in fuel prices. But as things progressed there it became clear that the protests began almost simultaneously across the country, strongly suggesting central organization, and Kazakh social media is awash with demands from the protesters, some of which also suggest foreign interference. This is a situation in development. We will begin to have a look at it here, to be updated as time goes on.<\/span><\/p>\n

A little background on Kazakhstan will give us some context for what is going on there. Kazakhs declared their independence from the USSR on 16 Dec 1991. The time was listed by Russian astrologers as 14:00 UT, at Almaty. The chart is below (bigger<\/a><\/span>):<\/span><\/p>\n

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Just very briefly, the main indicators in the chart are the Uranus\/Meridian axis square, showing sudden turns in destiny and upsets, along with its multi-vector approach to relations with its neighbors (strong independence). The conjunction with Neptune shows as unusual inclinations and occasional lack of control, as well as a possible hidden or latent spiritual element or potential.<\/span><\/p>\n

The nation\u2019s great oil wealth is shown in the Jupiter\/Neptune trine, while the square between Mars and Jupiter shows oligarchic control of that wealth as well as of the government. Mars rules the government of Kazakhstan. The Mars\/Jupiter square also shows a tendency to risky behaviour \u2013 behaviour which has placed it in its present circumstances, with the inexperience of such a young nation showing in its choices in international relations. This will be parsed as we go along. Idealism, shown in the sextiles between Venus and Jupiter and Venus and Uranus, is now giving way to realities for the people of Kazakhstan. We will leave the astrology of the nation at that for now.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kazakhstan is the world\u2019s largest landlocked country and is the 9th<\/sup>-largest nation by landmass. It shares long borders with Russia and China. It borders the Caspian and Aral Seas and is therefore a close neighbour with Iran. Its western-most border is in the Caucasus region. Therein lies our first clues as to which foreign powers may be interested in Kazakhstan.<\/span><\/p>\n

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To give an idea of how big it is, Kazakhstan placed on the US is shown below:<\/span><\/p>\n

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To be as big as it is (3\/8 the size of the contiguous US) its population is only just over 19 million, making it one of the most sparsely populated nations. About half of its populace is in its 10 major cities. The largest ethnic groups are Kazakhs and Russians, at 63% and 24%, roughly. There is also an ethnic Ukrainian group (2%) and Germans (1%). That demographic also gives us another clue about how the situation in Kazakhstan will resolve. Russia in particular has more than a little interest in the security of Kazakhstan as well for the ethnic Russians living there.<\/span><\/p>\n

To round out the background on Kazakhstan<\/a><\/span> before we get into what is taking place, there is the following:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cKazakhstan is the most dominant nation of Central Asia economically and politically, generating 60% of the region’s GDP, primarily through its oil and gas industry. It also has vast mineral resources<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0and is officially a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage.\u00a0Kazakhstan is a member of the\u00a0United Nations<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(UN),\u00a0WTO<\/a>,\u00a0CIS<\/a><\/span>, the\u00a0Shanghai Cooperation Organization<\/a><\/span>\u00a0(SCO), the\u00a0Eurasian Economic Union<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0CSTO<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0OSCE<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0OIC<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0CCTS<\/a><\/span>, and\u00a0TURKSOY<\/a><\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The CSTO will become important, examined in a bit. The following breakdown gives us an idea of the chief resources in Kazakhstan:<\/span><\/p>\n

What is not to like in terms of controlling Central Asia, if one can get the Kazakhs on-side? We should note, too, Kazakhstan is a main link in the Belt and Road Initiative<\/a><\/span>:<\/span><\/p>\n

With this background in mind we can begin to unpack what has just happened and why Kazakhstan figures strongly in the geopolitics of Asia and the Great Game between East and West.<\/span><\/p>\n

Probably the most comprehensive analysis of what just took place in Kazakhstan comes from the site of Colonel Cassad<\/a><\/span>. Unless you read Russian, use the machine translation. Beginning here, we have the following summary<\/a><\/span>:<\/span><\/p>\n