15:45, 06 December 2012 | GMT +5
Kazakh President: Land around Astana not for sale
ASTANA. December 6. KAZINFORM Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev gave a number of instructions to the Government on the preparations for EXPO-2017 at the meeting in Akorda.

The Kazakh President forbid to sell land plots around Astana. Large areas will be required for the construction of Expo 2017 facilities. Nazarbayev specifically warned that seizure of land under the guise of agricultural use should not be allowed.
In addition, the President noted, EXPO-2017 facilities should be the national brand as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Crystal Palace in London that also had been built within EXPO project.
According to Nazarbayev, Kazakh architects and artists will face big challenges.