Organization of Turkic States to hold extraordinary meeting on Kazakhstan amid unrest

By Merve Aydogan

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Friday expressed his country's support to Kazakhstan once again in a phone talk with his Kazakh counterpart Mukhtar Tleuberdi, according to diplomatic sources.

The foreign ministers over the phone addressed the latest developments in Kazakhstan, sources said.

Reasserting Turkiye's support to Kazakhstan, Cavusoglu and Tleuberdi also exchanged views on the extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Turkic States' Foreign Ministers on Jan. 11.

The meeting, which will be held virtually, will address and assess the latest developments in Kazakhstan, added the sources.

The protests began in western Kazakhstan on Jan. 2 over an increase in the prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and later spread to other areas of the country before going nationwide.

In response, Tokayev declared a state of emergency in the commercial capital Almaty and the oil-rich Mangystau region.

Tokayev also approved the resignation of the government, and requested support from the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Eurasian alliance of former Soviet states.