Kazakhstan Says Talks Underway to Bring Russia’s Kazakh Fighters Home

Kazakhstan is negotiating with Russia to return citizens who ended up serving with Russian forces in the war against Ukraine, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said. The ministry said on Tuesday, Oct. 6, that its hotline continued to receive appeals concerning Kazakh citizens in the combat zone and that officials were verifying each case.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. “Once the verification is completed, the compiled list will be sent to the Russian side,” the ministry said. Officials are already taking what they described as “necessary measures” concerning Kazakh citizens who published video appeals on social media. “Negotiations are underway regarding their return to their homeland,” the ministry added, saying it remained in contact with Russian officials at several levels. It did not disclose how many people could be included on the final list or whether Moscow had agreed to release them. Men say they were deceived and sent to war The negotiations followed video appeals from young Kazakh men asking their government to help them return home. Their relatives said the men had traveled to Russia after being offered civilian employment but were instead pressured into joining the Russian military and sent toward the war zone. One group claimed they had been recruited under the pretext of working for security companies. After arriving in Russia, they were allegedly taken to military facilities and threatened with imprisonment if they refused to serve. Other Topics of Interest NATO Military Committee Made First Visit to Kyiv in 8 Years The NATO Military Committee chair, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, and the military representatives of all 32 NATO nations visited Kyiv on Tuesday. Relatives said geolocation data sent by some of the men indicated that they were in the northern part of the Russian-occupied Luhansk region. Among the cases under review is that of Miras Tasharganov, whose mother told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Kazakh service that he had traveled to Russia to work in Kursk. According to her account, Tasharganov and other men complained about their working conditions before being taken to a military enlistment office and forced to sign contracts. Another Kazakh citizen, Ainabek Keldibek, born in 2006, reportedly traveled to Russia for work after completing his compulsory service with Kazakhstan’s National Guard in June. His brother said he was subsequently prepared for deployment to Ukraine. On Oct. 5, another man, Almaz Kaisar, recorded an appeal from a Russian training ground, claiming he was due to be sent to the front within three days. The accounts have not been independently verified, and Russia has not publicly commented on the allegations. The Ukrainian state project “I Want to Live,” which encourages Russian troops to surrender, claims that at least 2,420 Kazakh citizens have signed contracts with Russia’s Defense Ministry. The figure cannot be independently confirmed and does not indicate how many may have enlisted voluntarily or under coercion. Tokayev tells Putin to stop war but keeps ties close Kazakhstan has attempted to balance its longstanding relationship with Moscow against growing concern over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the recruitment of Kazakh citizens. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev directly urged Russian President Vladimir Putin in July to stop the war and return to negotiations. “All this needs to be stopped,” Tokayev said while sitting alongside Putin at a bilateral forum in the Russian city of Omsk. He suggested freezing the conflict and returning to an “Istanbul 2.0” negotiating framework backed by international guarantees. Astana has not recognized Russia’s attempted annexation of Ukrainian territories. However, it continues to maintain extensive commercial, political and strategic ties with Moscow. During Putin’s May visit to Astana, the two leaders signed a declaration setting out “seven principles of friendship”, covering economic cooperation, shared history, regional integration, education and security. Russia also agreed to help construct Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power plant since the collapse of the Soviet Union, with Moscow expected to finance most of the project. Kazakhstan relies heavily on Russian infrastructure to export oil to international markets, while Russia continues to lease the Baikonur Cosmodrome and use it for space launches. The two countries are also members of the Eurasian Economic Union and share one of the world’s longest land borders. Kazakhstan has tightened some export controls amid warnings that companies in Central Asia were helping Russia obtain sanctioned goods. Nevertheless, trade and infrastructure links leave Astana economically dependent on cooperation with Moscow. The attempt to retrieve Kazakh nationals from the Russian military illustrates that difficult balance: Tokayev’s government is publicly calling for the war to end while continuing major energy, space and commercial projects with the country waging it. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.