Since Russia cut Kazakhstan’s oil exports to Europe, the two countries have been at odds, Bild notes. It is the culmination of a months-long dispute between the two neighboring countries.
Is Putin now losing an important ally?
For decades, Russia and the former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan were considered loyal partners. Both countries are members of the Eurasian Economic Union, which was founded by Russia as a counterweight to the EU, and the defense alliance, which Russia also leads.
However, since the start of the war in Ukraine, there is no sign of friendship between the two countries. Because: Kazakhstan condemns the war and refuses to help Russia circumvent Western sanctions.
The tone – it gets tougher and tougher!
On Russian state television there were initially heavy attacks of Kremlin propaganda against Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan would not recognize the so-called people’s democracies of Putin’s puppets in Ukraine, Donetsk and Luhansk, Bild notes.
Now Kazakhstan apparently wants to become independent: Toqayev ordered a study to build a pipeline through the Caspian Sea. Kazakhstan’s oil would then be able to be pumped west through Azerbaijan by pipeline – bypassing Russia.
“Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Russia has been pursuing an aggressive policy not only towards the West, but also towards its allies,” Kazakh political scientist Dosim Satpaev tells Bild.
And further: “It constantly crosses the red lines in relations with its neighbors, ignores their economic interests and thus provokes the reaction. For example, in the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union, Russia unilaterally decided to reduce wheat exports without asking us . I would no longer call relations between Russia and Kazakhstan friendly. And they will get worse.”
There is a reason for the refusal of Kazakhs to support the war in Ukraine. More than two million Russians live in the northern part of the country. For a long time, Russian nationalists have been calling for the annexation of these territories to Russia. Many Kazakhs now fear that after the war in Ukraine, Putin may move against their country.
“Putin’s spokesman Peskov confirmed that Kazakhstan remains an ally,” says Dosim Satpaev. “But we know, at least since the attack in Ukraine, that such announcements must always be questioned.”
Source: Capital
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