Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan is a landlocked country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe, with its capital in Astana. It is the world's largest landlocked country by area and the ninth-largest country overall, spanning the steppe region between the Caspian Sea and China. Kazakhstan has a population of about 19 million and an economy heavily reliant on natural resources, particularly oil, natural gas, uranium, coal, metals and minerals. The country is the world's largest producer of uranium and holds significant reserves of copper, zinc, chromium, lead and rare earth elements. Its currency is the tenge, and the government operates as a presidential republic. Kazakhstan is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and maintains close economic ties with Russia, China and the European Union. The mining and metals sector is a cornerstone of the economy, attracting substantial foreign investment in copper, gold and industrial minerals projects. Oil and gas extraction in the Caspian basin and the Tengiz and Kashagan fields underpin export revenues. Kazakhstan gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 and has since pursued market-oriented reforms and diversification of its resource-driven economy.