The president of Kazakhstan, which is an ally of Russia, ordered today to "take emergency measures" to protect the civil and military infrastructure of his country due to the "escalation in Ukraine", reported France Press.
"The head of state Kassam-Jomart Tokayev instructed the prime minister, the presidential administration, the heads of all security forces (army, special services, police, prosecutor's office) and local leaders to take urgent measures to protect the main civilian and military sites . The measures are related to the escalation of the situation around Ukraine, announced on the Facebook social network. presidential spokesman Beric Wali.
The speaker recalls that Kazakhstan has regularly called on Moscow and Kiev to negotiate an end to the war "between two Slavic peoples".
President Tokayev's decision comes after Russian forces fired a latest-generation missile designed to carry a nuclear warhead into Ukraine. This move was assessed as an unprecedented escalation in the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin said yesterday that the conflict in Ukraine has taken on a "global character" and that the launch of the hypersonic ballistic missile "Oreshnik" is a response to Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory with missiles produced by Western countries.
In recent days, Ukraine has hit Russian territory with American ATAKMS missiles and with British "Storm Shadow" missiles.
Vladimir Putin is due to visit Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic that shares about 7,500 kilometers of border with Russia and is part of military and political blocs with Moscow.
Astana maintains a balance on the war in Ukraine by supporting Ukrainian territorial integrity and strengthening ties with the West without openly condemning the Russian invasion.