Kazakhstan President: CSTO forces to remain until situation stabilized

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Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has announced on Monday that the CSTO peacekeepers will remain in the country "until the situation is completely stabilized."

“The grounds for sending the CSTO Collective Peacekeeping Forces to the Republic of Kazakhstan are Articles 2 and 4 of the Collective Security Treaty, the Agreement on Peacekeeping Activities,” and they will remain the country "until the situation is completely stabilized," said Tokayev in a statement issued by the presidential office.

The statement added, “This was a well-organized and prepared act of aggression against Kazakhstan with the participation of foreign gunmen mostly from Central Asian countries, including Afghanistan. There were also militants from the Middle East.”

“Their intent was to create a zone of controlled chaos on our territory with the subsequent seizure of power. That is why a counter-terror operation was launched in Kazakhstan.”

Kazakh FM: Recent events in the country are a hybrid terrorist attack

The President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, said earlier today that his country survived an attempted coup.

The National Security Committee of Kazakhstan also announced that it neutralized "two extremist cells" in Almaty, whose members participated in the riots that took place in the country.

In the same regard, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan described the recent events in his country as a hybrid terrorist attack aimed at destabilizing and destroying the foundations of the state.

Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the Russian peacekeeping forces have begun to protect vital installations and key infrastructure in Kazakhstan.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that the mission of the Russian-led peacekeeping troops in Kazakhstan will soon come to an end.

He also emphasized that Moscow will not allow others to destabilize the nation or allow for a "color revolution", noting that some external and internal forces have exploited the economic situation in Kazakhstan to achieve their ominous purposes.

A quick background 

All this comes following Kazakhstani President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev declared a state of emergency in the west of the country and Almaty, in light of demonstrations over surging gas prices.

Police fired tear gas and stun grenades in a bid to break up the thousands-strong protest in Almaty last Tuesday. The police later opened fire after the protesters refused to disperse around 5,000 demonstrators.

President Tokayev announced the next day that he would be heading a cabinet meeting to discuss the social and economic condition of the country.

Following the protests, Tokayev asserted in a televised speech that he would not permit the toppling of the Kazakhstani regime.