Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose country is facing an insurgency by the Wagner paramilitary group, called his Belarusian and Kazakh counterparts, Moscow allies, on Saturday to update them on the situation.
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These are Mr Putin’s first international contacts since the start of this rebellion, launched by Wagner boss Evguéni Prigojine on Friday night.
“The Russian president this morning called Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Moscow’s closest ally, to update him “about the situation in Russia,” Belarus’ state-run Belta news agency quoted the press service as saying.
The Kremlin boss then telephoned his Kazakh counterpart Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, whose country is also an ally of Moscow, particularly within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russian-led military alliance, the press service of the Kazakh presidency said in a statement with.
“Vladimir Putin informed[the Kazakh President, editor’s note]about the situation in his country” and “thanked him for his understanding,” the same source says.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated in this interview that “the current events are an internal matter of Russia” and stressed that “constitutional order and the rule of law are a sine qua non for maintaining order in the country,” specified the Kazakh President.
When unrest broke out in Kazakhstan in January 2022, Tokaev called on Russia for help. The latter took over the leadership of a contingent of “peacekeepers” whose arrival put an end to the unrest that almost led to Mr. Tokayev’s fall. These riots had officially resulted in 238 deaths within nine days.