Kazakhstan former PM named leader’s top aide

Kazakhstan’s new president yesterday appointed a recently dismissed prime minister to head his administration -- a move almost certainly approved by the country’s veteran leader, who resigned this week. The appointment of exprime minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev as the new president’s chief of staff will bolster the view that Kazakhstan’s former president Nursultan Nazarbayev still calls the shots in the oil-rich Central Asian country.

Nazarbayev, who ruled the energy-rich Central Asian nation since before it gained independence with the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, stunned the country on Tuesday by announcing his resignation in a televised address. The 78-year-old however retains significant powers thanks to his constitutional status as “Leader of the Nation”, lifetime position as chief of the security council and head of the ruling party.

Last month, Nazarbayev dismissed Sagintayev as cabinet chief, citing poor economic performance and analysts suggested his dismissal was aimed at tamping down a simmering protest mood. Sagintayev, 55, previously served as economy minister and deputy chairman of the ruling Nur Otan party.