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Kazakh parliament concurs on renaming Kazakhstan’s capital city Nursultan

Members of the lower and upper houses of Kazakhstan’s parliament unanimously voted for the proposed amendments

Astana, Kazakhstan Valeriy Sharifulin/TASS

Astana, Kazakhstan

© Valeriy Sharifulin/TASS

ASTANA, March 20. /TASS/. Kazakhstan’s bicameral legislature passed a law at a joint meeting of its houses on Wednesday to change the capital city’s name from Astana to Nursultan, in honor of the country’s first President Nursultan Nazarbayev, a TASS correspondent reported from the parliament’s press center.

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"In accordance with Paragraph 1 of Article 91 of the Constitution, a bill on amending Kazakhstan’s Constitution has been submitted. This draft law is aimed at changing the name of the capital city from Astana to Nursultan. The country’s Constitutional Council presented its opinion in accordance with Paragraph 2 of Article 91 of the Constitution. Based on the proposal, I ask you to support the proposed amendments," said Aliya Akisheva, Deputy Presidential Chief of Staff, introducing the bill to lawmakers.

Members of the lower and upper houses of Kazakhstan’s parliament unanimously voted for the proposed amendments, having considered them in the first and the second, final reading. The law is thus considered to be approved by the parliament across the board, after which it will be submitted to the president for signing.

On Wednesday, at a joint meeting of the parliament’s houses, Kazakhstan’s interim President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev suggested changing the capital city’s name to Nursultan, in honor of the country’s first President Nursultan Nazarbayev in order to perpetuate his name.

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