Why The Kazakhstan Crisis Is A Much Bigger Deal Than Western Media Is Letting On
It is all about strategic depth for Russia. The Ukraine is on its western border and about 400 miles from Moscow. Kazakhstan borders much of Russia's near east- you know, the largest land border on earth.
While 90% of Americans couldn't find Kazakhstan on a map, see below, to Russia this is a vital national security interest.
Geopolitical commentator Clint Ehrlich has reported while on the ground in Moscow that "the situation in Kazakhstan is a much bigger deal than Western media is letting on." He further argues that the mayhem unleashed this past week and ongoing violent destabilization significantly increases the risk of NATO-Russia conflict.
He asks the key question: what really is happening in Kazakhstan? After all, he writes "In America, the situation in Kazakhstan is a small news item" but it remains that "in Moscow, it is currently receiving 24/7 news coverage, like it's an apocalyptic threat to Russia's security. I've had the TV on here while writing this thread, and Kazakhstan has been on the entire time." Below is Ehrlich's mega-thread from Twitter exploring the crisis and connecting the dots in terms of why this is a bigger deal than many believe...
Mass protests and anti-government violence have left dozens dead. Russia is deploying 3,000 paratroopers after Kazakh security forces were overrun. The largest city, Almaty, looks like a warzone. To appreciate why Russia is willing to deploy troops to Kazakhstan, it's critical to understand the depth of Russia's vital national interests inside the country. This isn't just any former Soviet republic. It's almost as important to Russia as Belarus or Ukraine.
First, Russia and Kazakhstan have the largest continuous land border on planet earth. If Kazakhstan destabilizes, a significant fraction of the country's 19 million residents could become refugees streaming across the border. Russia is not willing to let that happen.
Second, roughly one-quarter of the population of Kazakhstan is ethnic Russians. Kazakh nationalists are overwhelmingly Muslims, who resent the Orthodox-Christian Russian minority. Russia believes that civil war would entail a non-trivial risk of anti-Russian ethnic cleansing.
Third, the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan was the heart of the Soviet space program. Russia still uses it as its primary space-launch facility. The Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Far East will lessen that dependence, but it still isn't complete.
ΜOΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
MMC (01-10-2022)
Anger, injustice and politics brought people to the streets in KazakhstanopenDemocracy reached Yevgeniy Zhovtis, a prominent human rights defender and director of the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights, in Almaty via telephone. He was able to offer a tentative explanation of the causes and developments during this past week – as well as some insights on what to expect next.
Popular discontent in Kazakhstan has been simmering for years. What finally provoked the fuel protests that sparked the nationwide demonstrations?
First, there was a protest regarding a price increase of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), which was initially confined to western Kazakhstan, in the town of Zhanaozen. The government was unable to provide a satisfactory explanation, saying the pricing policy would now be regulated by market principles. Yet people knew that the fuel sector there is monopolised: lifting the government subsidies would simply mean more expensive fuel.
This initial protest of 2 January, which spelled out economic demands, was met by an attempt to negotiate on the part of the government, which sent a commission headed by the deputy prime minister to talk to people in Zhanaozen’s central square. The government wanted to avoid a repetition of the clashes that led to the shooting of unarmed striking oil workers there in 2011 and tried to prevent an escalation. It was, however, too late.
The next day the protest spread to nearby cities, sparking rallies of solidarity across the country. At this point, socio-economic demands were already being accompanied by more structured political demands for change.
Read the rest of the article. It doesn't seem to be an external factor such as an intelligence operation from a nation state.
ΜOΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
MMC (01-10-2022)
History does not long Entrust the care of Freedom, to the Weak or Timid!!!!! Dwight D. Eisenhower ~
MMC (01-10-2022)
These days , its become almost impossible to keep things secret for long .When events like the current situation in Kazakhstan come along , there's only a short window of opportunity , for the real culprits to achieve their aims , before the truth is exposed and they are caught out , red handed . The true details about why Kazakhstan has been targeted for "treatment" are beginning to leak out . It's for this very reason that few people trust the US these days........and when the full truth about Kazakhstan is out there for all to see , with evidence , there will be some serious embarrassment once again , for the US .
Last edited by PJL; 01-12-2022 at 07:56 AM.
Da Deepstate
I could post quite a bit more on this subject.......but I think this time , I'll just sit back , and let the sorry saga slowly unfold before your eyes .
I actually posted an article maybe 12 months back on tPF , about Kazakhstan.......the last line went something like "Kazakhstan - watch this space".....(lol)
Last edited by PJL; 01-12-2022 at 08:06 AM.