The following article is sourced from Reuters and pertains to Astana. The government announced on Friday that Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev would not be present at the upcoming annual economic forum in St. Petersburg, Russia. This decision was made after the President declined to conform to the Kremlin’s stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine during the previous year’s event.
According to the Kazakh government, the representation of the Central Asian nation at the current year’s forum will be limited to only two officials.
Before its incursion into Ukraine, Russia frequently welcomed global leaders and prominent business figures to the forum. However, in light of the events above, Western officials and business figures have opted to abstain from attending. Notably, during the previous year’s forum, Tokayev garnered significant attention by publicly refuting the Kremlin’s assertions regarding Ukraine.
During the forum, President Tokayev shared the stage with Russian President Putin, who also delivered an address. President Tokayev stated that Kazakhstan would not acknowledge the independence of pro-Russian statelets in eastern Ukraine or other former Soviet republics.
The remarks made by the individual in question garnered attention because Kazakhstan, a country that shares the world’s longest uninterrupted land border with Russia, has participated in security and trade alliances led by Moscow for many years and considers Russia its strategic ally.
The Kazakh government spokesperson provided information regarding the conference attendees this year. According to the spokesperson, only Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar and Deputy Economy Minister Timur Zhaksylykov will be present.
The office of Tokayev has refrained from providing any comments regarding the rationale behind his absence.
According to Russia’s RIA news agency report, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva declined an invitation from Putin to attend the forum this year. There has been no official announcement from Russian media regarding the attendance of any other global leaders.
The St. Petersburg Forum, which takes place in the former imperial capital of the Russian Empire, has been conducted since 1997. Russian officials position it as Moscow’s response to the yearly World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.