The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has permitted Kazakh banks to operate with Russia's Mir payment cards, which had been blocked due to international sanctions against Moscow for its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The Kazakh Agency of Financial Market Regulation said on December 9 that the OFAC permission was received a day earlier and relates only to individuals, namely Russian citizens who moved to Kazakhstan. Many banks in several nations stopped operations with Mir in recent months amid warnings to adhere to international sanctions against Moscow. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Kazakh Service, click here.