Meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Russian city of Omsk last weekend for a bilateral cooperation forum, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev decided to share his thoughts on the ongoing war in Ukraine. Offering what he himself described as his “humble opinion,” Tokayev suggested freezing the frontlines at their current positions while simultaneously restarting peace negotiations.
“Then, naturally, with security guarantees from the major powers, including Russia, it would be possible to move toward the long-awaited peace,” the Kazakh president said while presenting his opening remarks alongside Putin and the media.
Tokayev’s words made international headlines, coming from one of the few world leaders who has maintained close trading ties with Russia since 2022. For the same reason, Kazakhstan has also remained largely silent about the war, as have the other Central Asian states with close relations to Russia.
Tokayev’s call comes as Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russian oil and gas facilities, among them the marine terminal in Novorossiysk, through which 80 percent of Kazakhstan’s oil exports pass via the CPC pipeline. As these attacks have increasingly affected Kazakhstan’s economy, Astana now appears to have taken a more assertive diplomatic approach in an effort to restore normal export operations.
