The Kazakh capital, Astana, can be renamed to Nursultan in honor of first president Nursultan Nazarbayev, new president of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev proposed.
"I propose naming the country's capital Astana in honor of the first president," Tokayev said, suggesting the new name be "Nursultan".
"The opinion of (Nazarbayev) will be of special, one can say priority, importance in the development and adoption of strategic decisions," the AP cited the new leader as saying.
As Vestnik Kavkaza reported, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev said yesterday in his address to the nation that he would step down as the head of state and signed a decree on his resignation starting from March 20. Speaker of the country's senate Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will execute the office of the president until a new president is elected in 2020.
