Tokayev Calls for ‘Long-Awaited’ Peace in Meeting With Putin

Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev weighed in on Russia’s war in Ukraine over the weekend, urging Vladimir Putin to “freeze” the war in Ukraine and return to the negotiating table in a rare public statement regarding the conflict.Speaking on July 25 on the sidelines of a Kazakhstan-Russia cooperation forum being held in the Russian city of Omsk, in western Siberia, Tokayev said that “all of this needs to be stopped,” calling it a “shame” that “young people are dying,” while praising Russia’s “diplomatic flexibility” during previous negotiations. “My humble opinion is that perhaps this conflict should be stopped and [the two sides] should get back to an ‘Istanbul 2.0’ formula, since significant progress was made there,” Tokayev said. “Then, with guarantees for great powers, including Russia, we can move forward toward a long-awaited peace.”