Kazakhstan (the official name is the Republic of Kazakhstan) is a state in the center of Eurasia, most of which is in Asia, smaller - in Europe.
Population of Kazakhstan is 19 mln people (2021).
It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbekistan to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southwest, with a coastline along the Caspian Sea.
Kazakhstan is officially a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage.
It is located between the Caspian Sea, the Lower Volga region, the Urals, Siberia, China and Central Asia. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbekistan to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southwest, with a coastline along the Caspian Sea.
Kazakhstan is the world's largest landlocked country with an area of 2,724,902 km². It ranks 9th in the world in terms of territory, 2nd among post-Soviet countries (after Russia). The terrain of Kazakhstan includes plains, steppes, taiga, rocky canyons, hills, deltas, snow-capped mountains and deserts.
The economy is dominated by the hydrocarbon industry, and employment is highest in the service sector.
The population density is one of the lowest in the world: less than 7 people per square kilometer.
The capital city is Astana, known as Nur-Sultan from 2019 to 2022. The largest city with a population of over 2 million people is Alma-Ata, which was the country's capital until 1997.
Kazakhstan is a member state of the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, the Eurasian Economic Union, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the Organization of Turkic States, and the International Organization of Turkic Culture.
Kazakhstan was the last of the Soviet Union republics to declare independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union - in December 1991. Nursultan Nazarbayev became the first president of the republic and led the country from 1991 to 2019. After his resignation in March 2019, Chairman of the Senate, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, took over as interim president and subsequently won the elections on June 9, 2019.
Kazakhstan has a bicameral parliament composed of the Majilis (the lower house) and senate (the upper house).
President of the country is Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (69) since 2019.