Kazakhstan’s Tokayev Urges Putin to Freeze Ukraine War

During the 22nd Russia-Kazakhstan Interregional Cooperation Forum in Omsk on July 25, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to freeze the war in Ukraine and return to the “Istanbul 2.0” negotiation format. Tokayev compared the conflict unfavorably to the historically rooted tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia, stating that the war in Ukraine must be stopped because its continuation serves the interests of Russia’s adversaries. He also referenced the…