Kazakhstan crisis: MEA says India closely monitoring situation, assures safety of Indians

As Kazakhstan is currently facing massive protests against fuel price hikes, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Monday extended condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the violence. The MEA also assured that coordination with authorities has helped ensure the safety and security of the Indian nationals present there. 

"India is closely following recent developments in Kazakhstan. We express our deepest condolences to families of innocent victims who have lost lives in the violence. As a close and friendly partner of Kazakhstan, we look forward to an early stabilization of the situation," said the MEA in an official statement. 

The Ministry of External Affairs also said that the coordination with authorities has helped ensure the safety and security of Indian nationals and they are advised to follow local security instructions and get in touch with the Embassy of India for any assistance. 

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s State Secretary Erlan Karin has said that the protests against fuel price hikes were a “hybrid terrorist” attack. According to Sputnik, Karin said that the unrest was carried out with the participation of both the internal and external forces which were aimed to oust the government. 

As per an Associated Press (AP) report, the authorities in the country also informed that nearly 8,000 people were detained by police during protests that descended into violence last week and marked the worst unrest the country has faced since its Independence. Kazakhstan's Interior Ministry reported that a total of 7,939 people have been detained across the country. The National Security Committee, Kazakhstan’s counterintelligence and anti-terrorism agency, said Monday that the situation in the country has “stabilized and is under control.”

What happened in Kazakhstan?

After a huge hike in fuel prices, massive protests descended into violence and swept across Kazakhstan last week. Despite the government's efforts to calm the unrest and assurances to reduce the prices, violence continued with extensive clashes with law enforcement personnel in several regions of the country. Meanwhile, the government has declared a state of emergency until January 19 due to the prevailing situation. 

Kazakh Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday that law enforcement agencies have been instructed to probe into the cause that ultimately led to the present crisis in the country that witnessed the deaths of dozens and thousands have been wounded. 

(With Agency Inputs)

Image: AP/PTI