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### Viewing cable 08ASTANA760, LIFESTYLES OF THE KAZAZHSTANI LEADERSHIP

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
08ASTANA760 | 2008-04-17 10:10 | 2010-11-29 23:11 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Astana

`

    VZCZCXRO1604
    PP RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHPW
    DE RUEHTA #0760/01 1081035
    ZNY CCCCC ZZH
    P 171035Z APR 08 ZEL
    FM AMEMBASSY ASTANA
    TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2248
    INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE 0478
    RUCNCLS/SCA COLLECTIVE
    RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0110
    RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 2159
    RUEHDE/AMCONSUL DUBAI 0130
    RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 1899

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ASTANA 000760

    SIPDIS

    C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (ADD "CLASSIFIED BY" LINE

    SIPDIS

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/17/2018
    TAGS: PGOV PINR KZ
    SUBJECT: LIFESTYLES OF THE KAZAZHSTANI LEADERSHIP

    ASTANA 00000760 001.4 OF 003

    CLASSIFIED BY POL/ECON CHIEF STEVEN FAGIN, REASONS 1.4
    (B) AND (D)

    -------
    Summary
    -------

    ¶1. (C) Kazakhstan's political elites appear to enjoy typical
    hobbies -- such as travel, horseback riding, and skiing. Not
    surprisingly, however, they are able to indulge in their
    hobbies on a grand scale, whether flying Elton John to
    Kazakhstan for a concert or trading domestic property for a
    palace in the United Arab Emirates. This cable recounts
    several instances in which Embassy officers have learned of,
    or witnessed, the recreational habits of Kazakhstan's
    leaders. End Summary.

    --------------
    Sun and Horses
    --------------

    ¶2. (C) President Nazarbayev, like many of his countrymen, has
    a strong affinity for horses. In 2007, emboff visited the
    presidential horse farm with the daughter of the farm's
    manager. The farm is located on the outskirts of Astana in a
    residential area, but is surrounded by a high-fence and
    security guards. Inside the gates are a large stable, indoor
    and outdoor riding arenas, and a clubhouse with a pool table,
    sauna, and exercise room. Emboff toured the stable and saw
    approximately forty horses from various parts of the world.
    Emboff's companion told him that Nazarbayev visits the horse
    farm on occasion, though not too frequently. She said that
    Nazarbayev's wife -- Sara Nazarbayeva -- never accompanies
    him, but claimed that sometimes his "second wife" comes to
    the horse farm. (Comment: Most Kazakhstanis are familiar
    with the rumor that Nazarbayev has a "second wife," a former
    airline stewardess, who is said by some to reside in London.
    More recently, there have been whispers that Nazarbayev has
    yet a "third wife," a former beauty queen. We have no
    concrete information about either relationship, although
    Taszhargan, an opposition newspaper, printed a sympathetic
    article about Sara Nazarbayeva which expounded on her status
    as Nazarbayev's "co-wife." End Comment.)

    ¶3. (C) Nazarbayev is also fond of traveling to warmer climes
    in the region. The UAE Ambassador told emboff that Nazarbayev
    had traded property in Borovoe -- a mountainous resort area
    of Kazakhstan north of Astana and sometimes likened to
    Switzerland -- for a "palace" in the Emirates. He did not
    make clear whether the transaction was a permanent
    arrangement or only a temporary one. The head of Turkey's
    liaison office in Astana, Orhan Isik, told emboff that
    Nazarbayev has a mansion in Antaliya, which he visits 4-5
    times a year. Isik claimed that Nazarbayev received the
    property as a gift in the early 1990's and now plans to use
    part of the land for the construction of a luxury hotel.

    ------------------------
    Dancing at the Nightclub
    ------------------------

    ¶4. (C) On March 7, two days after his trip to the U.S. was
    cancelled, Prime Minister Masimov was spotted by emboff at
    Chocolat, one of Astana's trendiest nightclubs. Masimov
    entered at approximately 11:30 pm, accompanied by
    Presidential Administration head Kairat Kelimbetov, Astana
    mayor Askar Mamin, three middle-aged Kazakh women (presumably
    their wives), and a security detail. Although the club
    offers a VIP area, Masimov chose to sit at a table in full
    view of all of the club's patrons. Emboff lingered close to
    Masimov's group and saw several bottles of alcohol on the
    table. (Note: Another emboff had seen the group drinking
    earlier in the evening at a cigar bar at the Radisson Hotel,
    which is located in the same complex as Chocolat. End Note.)
    Masimov led his companions on to Chocolat's dance floor soon
    after their arrival. The dance floor holds approximately 100
    people, and at the time perhaps 50 patrons were dancing.
    However, Masimov himself chose to dance on an empty stage
    above the dance floor. His companions quickly tired but
    Masimov remained, dancing alone and animatedly on the stage
    for another 15-20 minutes. At approximately 1:00 am, Masimov
    and his retinue left the club.

    -------------------------
    Skiing with the Oligarchs
    -------------------------

    ¶5. (C) In September 2007, Kazakhstani oligarch Aleksandr
    Mashkevich -- the co-founder of metals and mining giant
    Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation and, according to

    ASTANA 00000760 002.4 OF 003

    CLASSIFIED BY POL/ECON CHIEF STEVEN FAGIN, REASONS 1.4
    (B) AND (D)

    Forbes magazine, the 334th wealthiest man in the world --
    hosted a dinner at his house in Almaty for two visiting U.S.
    congressmen. Only two Kazakhstanis attended the event, State
    Secretary Kanat Saudabayev and his assistant. Judging from

    SIPDIS
    the friendly banter between Saudabayev and Mashkevich, the
    two have a quite cordial personal relationship. Mashkevich
    told a lengthy anecdote about a ski vacation that he and
    Saudabayev had taken together in Europe.

    ¶6. (C) Saudabayev had hosted a codel at that same Almaty
    residence in 2005, without Mashkevich in attendance. At that
    time, when the Ambassador asked Saudabayev whose house it
    was, he would only say that it belonged to "a friend."
    Saudabayev has twice hosted visiting USG officials for a meal
    at Mashkevich's Astana residence -- both times without
    Mashkevich. It is not clear what Mashkevich is spending his
    billions on, but it is certainly not culinary talent. On all
    four occasions the Ambassador has eaten at one of his houses,
    the menu has been similar and focused on beshparmak (boiled
    meat and noodles) and plov. The wait staff appeared to be
    graduates of a Soviet cafeteria training academy. The wine,
    at least, was somewhat upscale with reasonably good French
    vintage bottles uncorked for the guests. The Astana
    residence has wooden plaques on the doors that would fit in
    nicely in a Wyoming hunting lodge but are somewhat out of
    touch with the upscale "Euro-remont" that is so popular among
    the Kazakhstani elite.

    -------------------------------
    Private Concerts with the Stars
    -------------------------------

    ¶7. (C) In 2007, President Nazarbayev's son-in-law, Timur
    Kulibayev, celebrated his 41st birthday in grand style. At a
    small venue in Almaty, he hosted a private concert with some
    of Russia's biggest pop-stars. The headliner, however, was
    Elton John, to whom he reportedly paid one million pounds for
    this one-time appearance. (Note: The British Ambassador
    relayed a slightly different story, with an unknown but
    obviously well-heeled friend arranging and paying for Sir
    Elton's gig. End Comment.) There have been separate
    reports that Nelly Furtado performed at the August 2007
    birthday bash for Kulibayev's wife, Dinara Nazarbayeva.
    Kulibayev also appears willing to spend his fortune on
    others. According to Turkish diplomat Isik, when the
    Kempinski group recently built luxury villas in Bodrum,
    Turkey, Kulibayev bought up a number of them -- at a cost of
    4-5 million dollars each -- and doled them out as gifts to
    friends and family.

    -----------------------
    Sports and Politics Mix
    -----------------------

    ¶8. (C) Sports and politics mixed seamlessly in Almaty on
    April 2, when some of Kazakhstan's most prominent political
    figures participated in the Beijing Olympics torch relay.
    Torchbearers included President Nazarbayev, Presidential
    Administration business affairs head Bolat Utemuratov, Nur
    Otan party first deputy chairman Adilbek Dzhaksybekov, and
    Agency for the Regulation of Natural Monopolies head Mazhit
    Yesenbayev. All of these bigwigs, except Nazarbayev himself,
    could justify their participation in the relay based not on
    their high-ranking political offices, but rather on their
    prominent official positions in the Kazakhstani sports world.
    Utemeratov just happens to head Kazakhstan's Tennis
    Federation, while Dzhakysbekov chairs the Football Federation
    -- a position previously held by ex-Nazarbayev son-in-law
    Rakhat Aliyev. Yesenbayev heads the Judo Federation.
    KazMunayGaz chairman Uzakbay Karabalin, who heads the Boxing
    Federation, and Nazarbayev son-in-law Timur Kulibayev, who
    heads the Golf Federation, also shared in the glory of
    carrying the Olympic torch. One prominent sport federation
    president who missed the torch call was Defense Minister
    Daniyal Akhmetov. He is head of the scandal-ridden Cycling
    Federation that sponsored a team in last year's Tour de
    France which flunked the drug test.

    -----------------------------------
    Relaxation the Good, Old Soviet Way
    -----------------------------------

    ¶9. (C) Kazakhstan's political elites also have recreational
    tastes that are not so exotic. Some, in fact, prefer to
    relax the old-fashioned way. Defense Minister Akhmetov, a
    self-proclaimed workaholic, appears to enjoy loosening up in
    the tried and true "homo sovieticus" style -- i.e., drinking

    ASTANA 00000760 003.4 OF 003

    CLASSIFIED BY POL/ECON CHIEF STEVEN FAGIN, REASONS 1.4
    (B) AND (D)

    oneself into a stupor. While most of our accounts of
    Akhmetov's indulgences with the bottle are hearsay, we do
    have "eyes on" for one episode which supports the rumors. In
    June 2007, Akhmetov showed up in grand form for a meeting
    with a visiting senior U.S. Defense Department official.
    Making no attempt to conceal his condition -- slouching back
    in his chair and slurring all kinds of Russian participles --
    Akhmetov explained to this very senior guest that he had just
    been at a cadet graduation reception "toasting Kazakhstan's
    newly-commissioned officers." Who was toasted more -- the
    Defense Minister or the cadets -- is a matter of pure
    speculation. Akhmetov's excesses do not solely extend to the
    bottle. An insider at Astana's Radisson Hotel recently told
    us about preparations for the unbelievably lavish and
    expensive wedding of Akhmetov's son. In the Kazakh
    tradition, the parents of the groom are responsible for the
    wedding -- so it would seem that Akhmetov must have footed
    the bill.
    ORDWAY

`