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The Regions This Week
July 21, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 8
Eurasia
The parliament of disputed enclave Nagorno- Karabakh voted in President Bako Sahakyan for a third term in power with a 28-4 vote. Sahakyan had secured the support of the majority Free Motherland Party, as well as of the Democratic and Dashnaktsutyun (Armenian Revolutionary Federation) parties. His sole opponent, Edward Agabekyan, head of opposition Movement 88, only received two votes from MPs outside his party.
Donald Trump reportedly came close to killing the nuclear deal with Iran, but administration officials apparently finally talked him around to issuing a new acceptance of Tehran's compliance with the agreement. However, Washington accused Iran of breaching the spirit of the deal and announced new sanctions against 18 entities, firms and individuals.
Kazakhstan’s state-run KazMunaiGas is likely to take advantage of proposed changes to the UK's listing rules. It is preparing for a 2019 IPO. While the UK’s new "premium" listing category for state firms is particularly intended to make the market more attractive for oil giant Saudi Aramco, capital markets lawyers say the changes will also appeal to other countries teeing up asset privatisations.
A woman, Farzaneh Sharafabadi, was named CEO of national flag-carrier IranAir following weeks of doubt as to whether the government would ratify the move. Already, a senior board member, she is the first Iranian woman to boast a PhD in aerospace. Iran, unlike its Persian Gulf Arab neighbours grants women full rights to own and operate businesses.
President Hassan Rouhani’s younger brother Hossein Fereydoun was arrested on financial corruption charges. Hardline elements in Iran have long levelled accusations at Fereydoun. He is accused of receiving zero-interest bank loans from the central bank and of influencing the appointment of a bank director dismissed in 2014 for receiving an enormous salary.
Tehran moved towards naming a square or street after world-renowned mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani, who died suddenly from recurring breast cancer at the age of 40. Mirzakhani, a Stanford University professor, became the first woman to win the Fields medal, often described as pure mathematics’ Nobel prize. Reporting her death, Iran’s state-run newspapers broke with the country’s strict rules on female dress to show Mirzakhani with her head uncovered.
The EU is reportedly planning to impose duties of up to 33% on hot-rolled steel imports from Iran, Russia, Ukraine, and Brazil to counter unfairly cheap goods. Iran’s steel industry,
seen as on the verge of a real breakthrough
on international markets, last year surprised Brussels-headquartered trade association Eurofer with Iranian steel exports into Europe growing nearly eightfold between 2013 and 2016.
Canada’s Bombardier will provide $100mn in finance for a deal to provide its jets to Iran's planned low-cost airline Fly Qeshm. A Qeshm Free Trade Zone representative said talks with the plane maker are almost finalised and that 80% of the deal will be covered by Bombardier.
Kazakhstan’s bilateral trade with Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia – its fellow members of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) – grew by 34.9% y/y to $6.5bn across January to May. Exports rose by 39.2% y/y to $2.01bn, while imports increased by 41.1% y/y to $4.49bn.
Kazakhstan’s Military Court officially com- menced the closed doors trial of former Kazakh National Security Committee (KNB) chief Nartai Dutbayev. Dutbayev, who headed the KNB from 2001-2006, and two former subordinates are charged with disclosing state secrets and abuse of office.