The Kazakhstani Ministry of Finance is pursuing a policy whereby the maturity of public securities will tend to increase, said the Deputy Minister of Finance, Zhannat Yertlesova, at a press conference last week. According to her, the Ministry of Finance is currently working to issue a small number of 5-year T-bills, and their long term goal is to also issue government securities with a maturity of 10-years. Mrs. Yertlesova said that the domestic debt has increased in recent years while both foreign and guaranteed debts have decreased. Presently, the Kazakhstani government's debt totals 16.6% of the GDP whereas the domestic debt makes up 4.6%, the foreign debt 8.1%, and the guaranteed debt 3.9%. She expects that the government's debt will reach 47% of the GDP by the year 2015. However, according to her, such a situation should not seem dramatic provided that the government debt is handled efficiently. (Interfax)

Kamal Kharrazi arrived in Astana on August 14 and met with President Nursultan Nazarbaev to discuss economic co-operation issues, the legal status of the Caspian Sea, and the political situation in Afghanistan. The parties intend to resume oil swap operations after Iran has completed the construction of a pipeline between the Neka port on the southern Caspian shore and the Persian Gulf. Tehran is prepared to buy up to 40,000 tonnes of crude oil, of which Kazakhstan will supply half and Turkmenistan will deliver the remaining 20,000 tonnes. Nazarbaev and Kharrazi also discussed the possibility of building a pipeline from Kazakhstan to Iran via Turkmenistan. Concerning the legal status of the Caspian Sea, Kharrazi said that all five Caspian littoral states must come to an agreement. He did not object to dividing the Caspian Sea. In his opinion, "both the bottom and water resources should be divided" between the countries. He also emphasised that the Caspian should become a demilitarised zone. (Interfax)

President Nursultan Nazarbaev recently sought to quell fears that there will be another government shake-up. "These rumours should be halted," he said to journalists. The president said he wants to continue working with the present government. He noted that the government is made up of professionals who have ensured the economic development of Kazakhstan under difficult conditions.(Panorama)