Salt and pepper hair, large square-rimmed glasses and monotone tone, the firmness of his speech contrasts with his apparent discretion. On Friday, the President of Kazakhstan authorized the security forces to “shoot to kill” in order to quell any riot and, with the support of Moscow, ruled out negotiating with the demonstrators. Long criticized by the population for “his lack of charisma”, Kassym-Jomart Tokaïev shows another face in this unprecedented social crisis in the country. Almost two years after coming to power, the leader of the former Soviet republic is the first to face riots of such magnitude. Among the criticisms formulated by the protesters: Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is accused of being the puppet of former President Nursultan Nazarbayev – who has ruled Kazakhstan without compromise since its independence in 1991.
Long perceived as one of the autocrat’s loyalists, the 68-year-old career diplomat was thrown into the light in March 2019. At the time, his predecessor announced his resignation to everyone’s surprise and his colt won the update. the outcome of a contested ballot. Violent protests erupt across the country, with protesters calling for a boycott of an election they believe is over. Once in power, the new strongman is not very popular, with some accusing him of donning a head of state costume that is too big for him. However, the official has been operating in the mysteries of power for almost three decades. When the USSR collapsed, he quickly became an adviser to Nursultan Nazarbayev, leader of the newly independent Kazakhstan.
He holds many positions at the top of the Kazakh state, from Prime Minister to Minister of Foreign Affairs and President of the Senate, the post he held when Nursultan Nazarbayev announced his departure. For two years, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has seemed to rule in the shadow of his predecessor. Without surprise. During his campaign, he promises to place himself in the continuity of his mentor. One of his first decisions as interim president was to rename the capital, Astana, “Nur-Sultan”, after his predecessor. The former president remains omnipresent in the political life of the country. Before resigning, he appointed himself head of the security council for life, that is to say that it is up to him to make all the important decisions of the country. He was dismissed from this post at the beginning of January following the riots directed against him.
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Russia and China as a backdrop
In such a context, the current president is seen as a man under the influence. On the side of the population, the latter seems to want to turn the page on the Nazarbayev era, which it accuses of representing a corrupt clan in power. To assert itself on the international scene, Tokayev is stepping up talks with foreign heads of state. To better understand its policy, it is necessary to look back on its academic career oriented abroad. After graduating from Almaty School – the scene of the worst turmoil this week – he studied foreign relations at the Moscow State Institute for International Relations (MGIMO) in the 1970s. The young Tokayev passes by his formative years in the service of the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Consequently, he knows Russia well, from which he sometimes seems to be inspired to lead his own country.
By evoking the demonstrations at Kazakhstan, he does not hesitate to use a rhetoric similar to that of Vladimir Poutine by suggesting that “foreigners” are at the origin of the disturbances. In a televised address, the president elected in 2020 “thanked especially” his ally the Russian head of state Vladimir Putin for his help. On Saturday, the head of the Kremlin and his Kazakh counterpart had a “long” telephone conversation to discuss the crisis situation in the Central Asian country. Yet Tokayev’s decision to call on the Russian-led regional military alliance to restore order reverses years in which Kazakhstan cautiously sought to pursue an independent, triangular foreign policy between Moscow, Washington and Beijing.
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On the international scene, the president also keeps his eyes on China, where he spent much of the 1980s at the Moscow embassy in Beijing. It was Tokayev who persuaded other nations to diplomatically recognize Kazakhstan. China was particularly enthusiastic. In the early 2000s, he was tasked with improving relations with Kazakhstan’s three key partners – Russia, China and the United States. He regularly meets with American envoys and helps Kazakhstan abandon its nuclear bombs inherited from the communist era. In private life, the head of state is distinguished by serious hobbies: reading novels, memoirs and books on politics. According to his official biography, the 60-year-old has written ten books on international relations. He also “supports a healthy lifestyle” and was the head of the Kazakhstan Table Tennis Association.
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