By Janet Ekstract
ISTANBUL (TURKISH JOURNAL)- On Sunday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavuşoğlu said that his country will “provide all kinds of support” to Kazakhstan in the wake of multiple protests that turned into massive riots and unrest due to skyrocketing prices on liquified petroleum gas (LPG) and increasing inflation which are creating harsh living conditions in the Turkic state. Cavuşoğlu, who spoke at a Justice and Development (AK) Party consultation-evaluation meeting in Antalya, expressed his hope that peace will be restored quickly in Kazakhstan. The Turkish foreign minister commented: “For this, we will provide all kinds of support as Turkiye and the Organization of Turkic States.”
To date, CNN International reported that at least 164 people were killed and more than 5,000 detained during protests that turned violent earlier in the week as Kazakhstan saw civil unrest in every corner of the country. The government handed in its resignation and a state of emergency was declared with troops from a Russian-led military alliance deployed to help quell the riots. Human rights organizations report riots initially broke out over skyrocketing gas prices and expanded to include government corruption, living standards, poverty and unemployment in a country that is oil-rich and that formerly belonged to the Soviet Union.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Commander General; Andrey Sedyukov told a news briefing that “Peacekeeping” forces from member states of CSTO were fully deployed to Kazakhstan and are now completely operational within the country. The CSTO comprises Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan and deployed its forces when autocratic Kazakh leader Tokayev requested help. So far, 5,135 people were detained for alleged participation in the protests and on Sunday Kzakh state media reported the statistics come from Kazakhstan’s Internal Affairs Ministry.
Kazakh state media reported Sunday that at least 5,135 people were detained for alleged participation in protests and said police opened at least 125 criminal cases related to incidences of violence, including charges of violence, murder and robbery.
