Protests in Kazakhstan: children killed and wounded, Germany halts arms exports

Meanwhile, President Tokayev initiates a "CSTO summit," while Russians are heavily guarding the Baikonur cosmodrome.

In Kazakhstan, amid military gunfire at protesters, reports have emerged of children being killed and wounded.

At the same time, Kazakhstan's nominal president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has called on the CSTO to hold a "summit," while Russians from the CSTO are heavily guarding the Baikonur cosmodrome, deploying heavy equipment onto the streets.

Due to the use of weapons to suppress protests, Germany has halted arms exports to the Kazakh regime.

We also explain why the internet shutdown in Kazakhstan led to a collapse in the cryptocurrency market.

Children killed and wounded

On January 5, a child was killed by a gunshot wound in Almaty, and on January 7, a teenager with severe gunshot wounds was brought to one of Almaty's children's hospitals.

According to information from Kazakhstan's Children's Rights Commissioner Aruzhan Sain, an 11-year-old Kazakh was killed by a shot on January 5 in Almaty, when his parents were walking with their children.

In addition, she said that on January 7, a 15-year-old teenager with severe gunshot wounds was brought to one of Almaty's children's hospitals, and doctors are fighting for his life. His father is in one of the adult hospitals.

According to the commissioner, the teenager was riding with his father in a car when their vehicle was fired upon by allegedly "militants," as Kazakh authorities call the protesters.

In addition, it is reported that President Tokayev has decided to declare January 10 a day of national mourning "in connection with human casualties resulting from terrorist acts."

CSTO "Summit"

Tokayev initiated the holding of a "CSTO summit" in online format in the coming days.

"Kassym-Jomart Tokayev told Vladimir Putin that the situation in the country is stabilizing. At the same time, the source of terrorist acts still exists. Therefore, he said, the fight against terrorism will continue. The president proposed holding a CSTO summit online in the coming days. The date of the meeting will be agreed through diplomatic channels," stated Tokayev's website.

The Kremlin stated: "Support was expressed for the proposal made by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to hold a meeting of the CSTO Collective Security Council in a videoconference format as soon as possible."

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the Armenian side, as the "acting chair" of the CSTO, will take on organizing this "event."

The Kremlin website also says that Putin, Lukashenko and Pashinyan discussed the "situation" in Kazakhstan, which in their view "tends toward calming and normalization." What exactly they meant is not reported; most likely, they were referring to the suppression of protests.

Russians in Baikonur

At the Baikonur space base in Kazakhstan, an elevated level of "terrorist danger" has been set until January 19, and Russian armored vehicles have already appeared on the city's streets.

A local report notes that law enforcement in the city is working under intensified service conditions, though it does not specify whether these are local law enforcement officers or Russians.

The video shows a BRDM with a Russian flag and a military truck traveling escorted by a police convoy.

Since January 7, in connection with the protests in Kazakhstan, residents of Baikonur have been barred from moving around the city in groups of more than three people, with rare exceptions, and a curfew has also been introduced.

The Baikonur cosmodrome is located in Kazakhstan's Kyzylorda region. The cosmodrome and the city of the same name together form the Baikonur complex, which Russia leases from Kazakhstan until 2050.

Germany halts arms exports to Kazakhstan

German authorities have decided to halt deliveries of military products to Kazakhstan due to the crisis situation in the country.

No details are given beyond the fact that German authorities have already taken steps to ensure that exports of such goods to Kazakhstan no longer take place.

The decision was made after the president of Kazakhstan authorized the army to open fire on protesters to kill without warning.

In 2021, Germany issued 25 licenses for the supply of defense products to Kazakhstan for a total of about €2.2 million. This is a small part of German exports.

Kazakhstan is not one of the main recipients of German defense products, but, as the December 2021 report by the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC) indicates, in recent years Germany has regularly supplied it with hunting and sporting rifles, technical reconnaissance systems, light helicopters, as well as satellite and rocket fuel for the Baikonur cosmodrome.

In addition, Kazakhstan has purchased German pistols. In particular, according to BICC data, the German company Sig Sauer supplied several hundred pistols for the security service of former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev and the "Aristan" counter-terrorism special unit.