What is Baikonur?
[[Image:Флаг города Байконур.svg|thumb|150px|Flag]] [[Image:Baikonur seal.png|thumb|100px|Seal]] '''Baikonur''' ([[Kazakh language|kaz.]] Baıqonyr/Байқоныр; [[Russian language|rus.]] Байконур) formerly known as '''Leninsk''' (also, see Tyuratam), is a city of republic significance in [[Kazakhstan]] on the northern bank of the [[Syr Darya]] river, rented and administered by the [[Russia|Russian Federation]]. It was constructed to service the [[Baikonur Cosmodrome]] and was officially renamed '''Baikonur''' by Russian president [[Boris Yeltsin]] on December 20, 1995. During the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] period, it was sometimes referred to as Звездоград (''Zvezdograd''), Russian for 'Star City'. {{asia-stub}} [[Category:1950s establishments in Kazakhstan]] [[Category:Cities and towns in Kazakhstan]] [[Category:Kyzylorda Region]]