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The Regions This Week
November 30, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 9
Eurasia
Iran said it opened “the Middle East’s biggest”
cancer medicines plant amid pharmaceutical shortages. In the face of renewed heavy US sanc- tions, Iran has been struggling to find replace- ment drugs for people suffering from a wide array of health disorders including cancers such as leukaemia.
US fast food restaurant chain KFC officially launched its brand in Uzbekistan with a cer- emony in Tashkent. The first KFC restaurant in Uzbekistan opened two months ago, and the chain reportedly aims to open at least 25 KFC restau- rants in the country in the upcoming years.
The European Union is set to open a delega- tion in Turkmenistan, according to the European Union External Action Service. The establishment of the delegation in Ashgabat will allow the EU
to step up its political, economic and sectoral dialogue and cooperation with the remote, tightly controlled Central Asian nation of Turkmenistan.
Kazakhstan slightly cut its 2019 economic growth outlook to 3.8%, down from the previ- ously anticipated 3.9%, Economy Minister Timur Suleimenov said. The adjustment is due to lower expectations for the average Brent crude price
— the Kazakh government originally assumed an average world oil price of $60 per barrel for 2019, but the forecast has been changed to $55.
The Armenian central bank lowered its 2018 GDP growth forecast to 4.6%-5.1%, down from an earlier projection of 5.6%-6.9%, a central bank re- port said. According to the bank, the high rates of economic activity seen in the first half of the year started to tail off in the third quarter.
The volume of oil and petroleum products trans- ported through Georgia's ports hit a decade low this year, founder of the Transport Corridor Re- search Center and HUB Georgia expert Paata Tsa- gareishvili said, as quoted by bm.ge. Transporting
oil as cargo, as opposd to sending it by pipeline, is no longer competitive, he reportedly explained.
Lawmakers gave preliminary approval to a bill cancelling the immunity enjoyed by Kyrgyzstan’s ex-presidents. Currently, there are only two peo- ple with the official status of ex-president of Kyr- gyzstan — Roza Otunbayeva, an interim president in 2010-11, and Almazbek Atambayev, who ran the country from 2011 to 2017.
Tajikistan exported 1.48bn kWh of electricity to Uzbekistan in April-September 2018, first deputy chairman of Tajik state-owned company Barki Tojik, Mahmadumar Asozoda, said. Tajikistan re- sumed its electricity exports to Uzbekistan in April after a nine-year break — the relaunch of supplies took place as Uzbekistan restarted gas exports to Tajikistan after a six-year break.
Qatar Airways will add more flights to Iran from January, despite the US re-imposing heavy sanc- tions on Iran. Iran, like Turkey, is standing by Qatar, helping it to overcome a land, sea and air blockade mounted by fellow Gulf Arab countries led by Saudi Arabia.
Azerbaijan’s Socar cut the price of a range of petrochemical products made by its Turkish
unit Petkim to help Turkey’s government fight its double-digit inflation, Dunya newspaper reported. Azerbaijan is a close political ally of Turkey and Socar is investing billions of dollars in the country.
The high-profile trial of three Kazakh men charged with propagating terrorism was ad- journed after two of the men inflicted deep cuts to their arms with sharp metal objects in an Almaty courtroom. Investigators claim the three planned to enact jihad by propagating the ideas of the banned Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan move- ment founded by fugitive Kazakh banker Mukhtar Ablyazov.