Kazakhstan, an ally of Russia, nevertheless authorized this weekend a demonstration against the war in Ukraine, while the government seeks to move away from Moscow so as not to be included in Western sanctions.
The event is all the more surprising since the regime of this former Central Asian republic generally prohibits demonstrations. Finally, on Saturday, around 2,000 people were able to march through the center of Almaty, the economic capital of the country, according to an AFP journalist.
The Kazakh Foreign Ministry, for its part, has insisted in recent days on the country’s neutrality in this conflict.
He notably received the British ambassador on this subject, after a British deputy had called, Monday in London, to also put in place sanctions for the allies of Russia.
In January, Moscow had played an important role, notably by sending troops, alongside the Kazakh government to put an end to a series of demonstrations sometimes turning into a riot, in particular to protest against the rise in the price of energy . Clashes between demonstrators and the army left more than 200 dead.
