David Cameron, having inaugurated the world's costliest oil project in Kazakhstan, said he hoped the thirty businessmen accompanying him (from Rolls-Royce, British Gas, Ernst & Young et al) would sign more than £700m worth of deals during his two-day trip. Since its independence in 1991, officials say British firms have invested about $20 billion in their economy, part of a total $170 billion ploughed into Kazakhstan since then.
Human Rights Watch says Kazakhstan's human rights record has "seriously deteriorated". Freedom of assembly is strictly controlled, independent media outlets have been shut down, restrictive law on religious freedoms remains in force and strikes in certain sectors are banned.
Still, as long as we're in the "global race for jobs and investment. This is one of the most rapidly emerging countries in the world", after all.
Reuters - http://reut.rs/12f81zM
Channel 4 News - http://bit.ly/12f89PA
