Russian CSTO to Hand Over Protected Sites to Kazakh Authorities

According to Commander of the CSTO's collective peacekeeping forces, Colonel General Andrey Serdyukov told reporters that the command staff of the Collective Security Treaty Organization's (CSTO) peacekeeping forces and Kazakhstan's Defense Ministry are working on a safe program to hand the sites already protected by the Russian peacekeepers to the Kazakh authorities.

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"The CSTO collective peacekeeping forces' command staff and the Kazakh Defense Ministry are working on a plan to hand the sites that are being protected by peacekeepers over to the country's law enforcement agencies," he stated.

The Commander noted that after accomplishing the mission of restoring the stability in Kazakhstan, alongside the Kazakh authorities would manage their return to the permanent bases on flights operated by the Russian Aerospace Forces.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev requested the CSTO presence. The disturbances started on January 2 across the country, which exacerbated the situation leading to mass protests, implying attacks on authorities and government property in several cities, but mainly in Almaty.

The reports indicate that at least thousands of people were injured, and many casualties remain unknown. Kazakh authorities decreed that peace was restored to all its regions after the Russian peacekeeper forces answered their request.