Law enforcement officials during a protest in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan MOSCOW, Jan 6 The permission of the Russian parliament is not needed to send the CSTO contingent to Kazakhstan, for this there is a charter of the organization, its forces are in constant readiness, Leonid Kalashnikov, chairman of the State Duma committee on CIS affairs, Eurasian integration and relations with compatriots, told RIA Novosti. The CSTO Collective Security Council made a decision to send the Collective Peacekeeping Forces to Kazakhstan in connection with the appeal of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Chairman of the Council Nikol Pashinyan said earlier. It is reported that the forces will be sent for a limited time period in order to stabilize and normalize the situation in this country.
& # 34; No, it is not necessary (permission of the Russian parliament — ed.). For this, there is a CSTO charter, special forces of the CSTO, they are in constant readiness, are undergoing exercises, including for such situations. Duma permission is not required here & # 34 ;, — said Kalashnikov.
Mass protests in Kazakhstan began in the early days of 2022. Then the residents of the cities of Zhanaozen and Aktau in the Mangistau region — an oil-producing region in the west of the country — opposed a two-fold increase in prices for liquefied petroleum gas, then the protests spread to other cities. In Alma-Ata, the old capital of the republic, on January 4 and 5, clashes with security forces occurred, the police used gas and stun grenades. Throughout Kazakhstan, the Internet was turned off, a number of TV channels temporarily stopped broadcasting. On 5 January, President Kassym-Zhomart Tokayev declared a state of emergency for two weeks in Mangistau and Almaty regions, as well as in Alma-Ata and Nur-Sultan. This regime provides, in particular, a curfew from 23.00 to 7.00, a ban on holding mass events, strikes and the sale of weapons, as well as strengthening the protection of especially important facilities. On the same day, the state of emergency — also until January 19 — was extended to the entire territory of Kazakhstan. On the morning of January 5, Tokayev dismissed the government and headed the republic’s Security Council, removing the first head of state, Nursultan Nazarbayev, from this post. In addition, the President stressed that the authorities will act as tough as possible in relation to the offenders, and promised in the near future «to come out with a new package of proposals.» On the night of January 6, Tokayev held the first meeting of the Security Council under his leadership, at which he called the situation in Kazakhstan «undermining the integrity of the state» and said that he had asked the CSTO for help «in overcoming the terrorist threat.» Follow the situation in Kazakhstan in online report & gt; & gt; Kazakhstan is set on fire with liquefied gas