Kazakhstan–Georgia Pivot: Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze met President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev as Georgia and Kazakhstan signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement, with both sides pointing to bigger trade, investment, and Middle Corridor logistics cooperation. Renewables Push: Masdar broke ground on a $1.4bn, 1GW wind farm in Kazakhstan’s Zhambyl region, including 600MWh battery storage, aiming to power about 880,000 homes and cut millions of tonnes of CO2. AI + Data Centers: Kazakhstan is advancing its “data center valley” plan, with Firebird set to join the Pavlodar buildout to support domestic AI computing capacity. Border & Trade Facilitation: Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan will upgrade two road checkpoints to international, round-the-clock status, while Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan agreed to move cross-border road permits to an e-permit system from 2027. Public Safety & Water: U.S. firms will help Kazakhstan improve snow monitoring and spring runoff flood forecasting to reduce the risk of major flooding. Energy Shock Spillover: Russia’s fuel crisis is worsening, with shortages and rationing reported across many Russian regions—raising concerns for regional stability. Health Upgrade: A new 50-bed cardiology center opened in the Almaty region to provide round-the-clock high-tech heart care. Crime Crackdown: Kazakhstan reports 216 “droppers” convicted in fraud cases since criminal liability began, with hundreds of millions of tenge laundered via stolen accounts.