The federal government is stopping its arms exports there because of the serious unrest in the country.
(Photo: imago images / ITAR-TASS)
Almaty, only Sultan Because of the conflict in Kazakhstan, the federal government stops exports of armaments to the former Soviet republic. According to information from the German Press Agency, the necessary steps have been taken to prevent such goods from being exported to Kazakhstan.
Last year, 25 licenses for the export of armaments to Kazakhstan with a total value of around 2.2 million euros were granted. That is a comparatively low value – nevertheless, given the current situation, an export freeze is advisable.
Serious unrest has broken out in the Central Asian country. The trigger was displeasure with the rise in fuel prices at the petrol stations. There are now violent protests against the government.
In response, President Kassym-Shomart Tokayev dismissed the entire government and imposed a nationwide state of emergency. At his request, a Russian-led military alliance also intervened. Tokayev issued an order to shoot protesters on Friday.
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The dismissed head of the National Security Committee, Karim Massimov, has now been arrested on suspicion of high treason. He was taken into custody with other senior officials, the security committee said on Saturday.
No further details were given. Massimov is considered a confidante of the former President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who had ruled Kazakhstan authoritarian since independence until 2019. Massimov was twice prime minister and under Nazarbayev also head of the presidential administration.
In view of the tense situation in Kazakhstan, the US is withdrawing unnecessary staff from its consulate general in Almaty. There had been violent clashes there in the past few days.
Kazakhstan’s influential ex-long-term ruler, Nursultan Nazarbayev, has not left his home country despite the unrest, according to a spokesman. “The leader of the nation is in Kazakhstan’s capital Nur-Sultan,” wrote Ajdos Ukibaj on Twitter on Saturday.
The president recently announced that he had given police orders to kill during the protests.
(Photo: dpa)
There had previously been rumors that the 81-year-old had left Kazakhstan after his successor Tokayev removed him from the position of head of the influential Security Council. Nazarbayev is in direct contact with Tokayev, wrote Ukibaj. The ex-president, who resigned in 2019, is considered the real strong man in the authoritarian-led ex-Soviet republic.
More: What the unrest in Kazakhstan means for Russia, China and the USA