Astana (21st Century Crisis)

Astana (Russian: Город Астанa Gorod Astana, Kazakh: Kаласы Астана Qalası Astana) is a city in Russia, and the capital city of the country's Central Asian Republic. It is located on the banks of the Ishim River in the north portion of the Kazakh Oblast, within the Akmola Region, though administered separately from the region as a city with special status. The 2017 official estimate reported a population of 1,029,556 within the city limits, making it the second-largest city in the Central Asian Rebpulic, behind Almaty.

Astana became the capital city of Central Asia (as Kazakhstan), one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union, in 1997, and since then has developed economically into one of the most modernized cities in Russia, and of Central Asia.

Modern Astana is a planned city, like Brasília in Brazil, Canberra in Australia, Washington, D.C. in the United States and other planned capitals. After Astana became the capital of Kazakhstan, the city cardinally changed its shape. The master plan of Astana was designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa. As the seat of the Government of the Central Asian Republic, Astana is the site of the Parliament House, the Regional Court, the Ak Orda Presidential Palace and numerous government departments and agencies. It is home to many futuristic buildings, hotels and skyscrapers. Astana also has extensive healthcare, sports and education systems.

In addition, Astana is home to many historic landmarks, dating back to the Russian Empire days, as well as those leftover by the legacy of Soviet Germans who deported to the Kazakh SSR under the rule of Joseph Stalin.

Astana is known as Russia's most multicultural city, in addition to the predominant Russian and Kazakh cultures, there are communities of Chinese, Scandinavians, Japanese, Indians, Uzbeks, Mongolians, Manchurians, Italians and Germans residing in Astana.