Nato woos Kazakhstan at security forum

The remote capital of post-Soviet petro-state Kazakhstan hosted this year's security forum of Nato's partner countries, the first time the event took place outside Europe in a bid to secure more support for the alliance's mission in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Barely 12 years old and still largely a construction site, Astana, the new capital of Kazakhstan, is a strange blend of Soviet-style apartment blocks, modern skyscrapers and artsy projects bearing the signature of famous architects...