According to the Constitution, the state system of the Republic of Kazakhstan is defined as democratic, and its people are endowed with sovereign rights. According to microedu, the constitution was adopted on July 17, 1948, and later amendments were made to its text.
Administratively, the country is divided into 9 provinces (Gyeonggin-do, Gangwon-do, Chungcheongbuk-do, Chungcheongnam-do, Jeollapuk-do, Jeollanam-do, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Gyeongsangnam-do, Jeju-do) and 7 cities with provincial administrative rights (million people, 2000): Seoul, Busan (3.8), Daegu (2.5), Incheon (2.5), Gwangju (1.4), Daejeon (1.4), Ulsan (1.0). In addition, there are 232 lower-level administrations: 72 “si” (large cities), 89 “kun” (county) administrations, 69 “ku” (urban areas within large cities) administrations.
RK is a presidential republic. The highest body of legislative power is the unicameral legislative assembly, consisting of 273 deputies elected for 4 years by direct vote. According to party lists, 1/6 of the total number of deputies is elected, 5/6 – in single-mandate constituencies.
The main function of Parliament is legislative. Other functions include passing the budget, supervising the conduct of foreign policy, declaring war and sending troops abroad, stationing foreign troops in the country, and supervising or investigating special matters of national importance.
The President is elected by direct universal suffrage for a term of 5 years, after which he is not eligible to run again. The president is both the head of state and the executive branch. As the leader of a political party, he appoints senior government officials in accordance with the recommendations of his party. The President appoints the Prime Minister and other leaders of the executive branch. The president is also the supreme commander in chief and directs the foreign policy of the state.
The president exercises the functions of the head of the executive branch through the State Council, which consists of 15-30 people appointed by the president and reporting only to him. Members of the Council of State may head or supervise ministries, act on behalf of the president, and have the right to attend and speak at meetings of the National Assembly.
The prime minister who heads the government is appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly. During the administration of President Kim Dae-jung (1998-2003), public administration reform was carried out. In 1998-2001, as a result of the reorganization of state bodies, the number of ministerial posts was reduced from 43 to 31, and the total number of civil servants (in the government apparatus and in local authorities) decreased by 10% to 829,816 people.
The leading political parties are the New Millennium Democratic Party (more often called the Democratic Party), the Great Country Party, and the United Liberal Democrats Party. There are also a number of smaller parties whose political influence is negligible. The opposition Great Country Party won the 2000 parliamentary elections. As of June 2002, its faction consisted of 133 deputies, the faction of the Democratic Party – 119 deputies (including 4 independent deputies who joined the faction after the parliamentary elections), the faction of the United Liberal Democrats – 17 deputies, the Democratic People’s Party – 2 deputies, independent – 4 deputies.
Lee Syngman was elected the first president of the Republic of Kazakhstan in 1948, whose rule fell on the Korean War and the reconstruction period, which was distinguished by a difficult political and economic situation. In April 1960, under the pressure of powerful student protests, Lee Syngman was forced to resign from his post.
With the formation of the government by the representative of the Democratic Party, Chang Myung, the transitional stage of the country’s development is counted, which ended in May 1961 with a military coup and the coming to power of General Park Chung-hee, who then won the presidential election in 1963. This period is marked by an authoritarian style of government, in which the administration of Park Chung-hee, strictly controlling the socio-political processes in the country and suppressing opposition speeches, sought to concentrate financial, material and human resources on strategic areas of economic development. Under President Park Chung-hee, the foundations were laid for a development model that allowed the country to achieve impressive economic success and remained unchanged until the crisis of 1997–98.
After the assassination of President Park Chung-hee in October 1979, a short transitional period followed, during which Choi Gyu-ha, who took office, was at the head of the country. As a result of a military coup in December 1979, General Chung Du Chwan, who was elected president of the country by the National Conference for Unification (electoral college) in August 1980, came to power.
In 1987, the provision for direct presidential elections was restored in the Constitution of the country, and in the same year, former General Ro Dae Wu was elected to the highest state post.
As a result of the progressive transformations taking place in the country, in 1992 a civilian politician, a representative of the ruling party, Kim Yong Sam, was elected president.
In 1997, a symbolic event for the Republic of Kazakhstan took place: for the first time, peacefully, as a result of democratic elections, there was a transfer of power from the ruling party to the opposition, when Kim Dae-jung was elected president, for many years considered a symbol of opposition to the authoritarian regimes that ruled in the Republic of Kazakhstan until the early 1990s. 1990s
In December 2002, he won, and in February 2003, the representative of the Democratic Party of the New Millennium, No Moo Hyun, took up his duties.
The Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan consist of the Ground Forces, the Navy and the Air Force. The total strength of the Armed Forces is 690 thousand people, of which 560 thousand are the Ground Forces, 67 thousand are the Navy, and 63 thousand are the Air Force (2001). Military spending in 2001 was 15,388 billion won (11.92 billion US dollars). The South Korean army is armed with 2360 tanks, 2400 armored personnel carriers, 5180 artillery pieces, 160 ships and 6 submarines, approx. 550 fighters, etc.
The cornerstone of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy is the strategic military-political alliance and close trade and economic relations with the United States. Since the normalization of diplomatic relations between the ROK and Japan in 1965, South Korean-Japanese ties have been actively expanding in the fields of politics, security, economics, and culture. In August 1992, the ROK established diplomatic relations with the PRC, after which bilateral relations began to develop dynamically in many areas, primarily in the economy. China has become one of the most important foreign trade partners of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
In the beginning. 21st century The Republic of Kazakhstan pays priority attention to the state of relations with the countries of East Asia. Since 1999, the Republic of Kazakhstan has been participating in the annual meetings of the heads of state and government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, China and Japan, during which topical issues of international relations are discussed, with priority given to the joint search for ways to solve economic problems. The Republic of Kazakhstan is also actively developing contacts with the countries of Southeast Asia within the framework of the ASEAN + Three dialogue (10 member countries of ASEAN and the Republic of Kazakhstan, China, Japan).
ROK established diplomatic relations with the USSR in September 1990. Russian-South Korean relations cover the spheres of politics, security, economics, science and culture. Meetings of the leaders of the two countries at the highest level have become regular. However, economic cooperation has significant untapped reserves. The volume of trade is 3.2 billion dollars, the declared South Korean investments in the Russian Federation – approx. $270 million (2002).
