Kazakh politician
Adilbek Ryskeldiuly Zhaqsybekov
(
Kazakh
:
?д?лбек Рыскелд??лы Жа?сыбеков
,
Adılbek Ryskeldı?ly Jaqsybekov
) (born 26 July 1954)
[3]
is current Head of the Executive Office of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan. He served as the minister of defence from June 2009 to April 2014. He was the head of
Kazakh President
Nursultan Nazarbayev
's administration in 2004-2008 and 2016-2018.
[4]
[5]
He served as the mayor of
Astana
from 1997 to 2003
[6]
and from 2014 to 2016. Chairman of Governors of the
Islamic Development Bank
in 2003,
[7]
and the Minister of Industry and Trade from 2003 to 2004.
[8]
While Information Minister, Zhaksybekov participated in a meeting held in
Kyiv
,
Ukraine
in 2004 in which a
Common Economic Area
was proposed for Kazakhstan, Ukraine,
Belarus
, and
Russia
.
On 4 April 2004, he gave a speech entitled "The Industrial Innovation Development Strategy of Kazakhstan, 2003?2015" in
Washington
, DC.
[9]
Kazakhstan and the World Trade Organization
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Supachai Panitchpakdi
, the Director-General of the
World Trade Organization
, met with Zhaksybekov and a government delegation in
Geneva
on 9?15 July to discuss Kazakh admission into the
World Trade Organization
. The Kazakh Foreign Ministry issued a press release about the talks on 17 July.
Radio Free Europe
reported that a WTO Secretariat offered to "provide technical and organizational help to prepare Kazakhstan for membership" as both Panitchpakdi and Zhaksybekov agreed that Kazakhstan "needs to make its economy more competitive before joining." The WTO credited the government for liberalizing its policy on foreign-trade and conforming to WTO accounting policies. The Kazakh Foreign Ministry was positive about Kazakhstan's prospects of becoming the second Central Asian state with membership in the WTO.
[10]
Cultural exchange with Russia
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Zhaksybekov, who served as the mayor of
Astana
, met with Yuri Luzhkov, the mayor of Moscow, during the "Days of culture," held from 14?16 May, in 2002. The local government in Moscow sponsored ten events, including the presentation of a stone sculpture entitled "A Symbol of Friendship of Moscow and Astana."
[6]
Trade agreements
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Agreement with Pakistan
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]
Zhaksybekov and
Abdul Hafeez Sheikh
, the Pakistani Minister for Investment and Privatization, signed a trade agreement on 8 December 2003. According to
Dawn
, the agreement would "promote and protect bilateral trade and investment and enhance economic, scientific and technical cooperation" by creating "favourable conditions for investment by each others' investors for reciprocal promotion and protection of investments." The agreement prevented
double taxation
, and forbid "expropriat[ion], nationaliz[ation]," and "requisitioning" of each other's investments in their respective countries.
[11]
Agreement with Afghanistan
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Sayeed Moustafa Khazi
, Afghan's Trade Minister, and Zhaksybekov signed an Agreement on Trade and Economic Cooperation on 15 April 2004. President Nazarbayev and
Afghan President
Hamid Karzai
signed an agreement on Treaty on Foundations of Relations and Cooperation earlier that day in
Astana
. The meeting was Karzai's first official visit to Kazakhstan. Nazarbayev told a news conference in Astana, "Kazakhstan is absolutely interested in developing trade, economic and political relations with Afghanistan, as well as in our
joint fight against terrorism
and drug trafficking." He continued by saying the entire world was eager to see peace and economic restoration in Afghanistan, and "we are in
this coalition
. We are grateful to President Karzai for inviting Kazakh bankers and businesspeople to come and work in Afghanistan. Today's visit of the Afghan President is historic, because we meet here for the first time since the statehood of Afghanistan has been restored and the documents we signed are a good foundation for further cooperation." The President continued by offering to provide Kazakh experts "ready to work in Afghanistan in geology, building roads and installations, helping with medical professional, and continue to assist in any way we can, because we are interested in stability in Afghanistan. We want to trade and to use Afghan territory to build links to the south." Karzai said, "I believe Kazakhstan is an example of a country that was given an opportunity and used it. We intend to continue working with Kazakhstan to develop transit potential and bilateral trade."
[12]
Information technology
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On 26 March 2004, Zhaksybekov met with Information Minister Birzhan Kaneshev and Jean-Philippe Courtois, the
Microsoft
CEO for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, in Astana. They signed a
memorandum of understanding
outlining the development of information technology in Kazakhstan. Microsoft agreed to help the government create an internal network, an information technology sector, and Microsoft Office software in
Kazakh
. Courtois noted Microsoft and the government agreed to exchange information security knowledge. Zhaksybekov said the MOU would lead to future deals with other companies "involving big money."
[13]
Islamic Development Bank
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The
Islamic Development Bank
, which Zhaksybekov chaired in 2003, agreed to lend the Kazakh government an additional USD $32 million in a meeting in September 2003.
IRIN
reported the money was lent for "upgrading water and postal systems and establishing a 'legal and humanitarian' university."
[14]
2007 political shakeup
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Prime Minister
Daniyal Akhmetov
resigned on 8 January 2007. President Nazarbayev nominated Deputy Prime Minister
Karim Masimov
, Akhmetov's political rival, to succeed Akhmetov, on 9 January 2007. Nazarbayev's political party
Nur Otan
endorsed Massimov, but some analysts in Kazakhstan considered Zhaksybekov as a candidate.
[15]
The
Parliament
convened on 10 January to which Massimov was confirmed as the Prime Minister.
He was the head of the Football Federation of
Astana
city from 2000, until being elected the president of the
Football Federation of Kazakhstan
on 28 August 2007.
[16]
References
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External links
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