The threat of terrorism in Kazakhstan plays an increasingly important role in relations with the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

which in 2006 were at an all-time high.Joint Statement Between the United States of America and the Republic of Kazakhstan
The White House Kazakhstan has taken

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...

's place as the favored partner in

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...

for both Russia and the United States.Five Years After 9/11: Crackdowns loom behind Central Asia's War On Terror
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty
SignOnSanDiego
Uyghur American Association Kazakhstan's counter-terrorism efforts resulted in the country's 94th ranking among 130 countries in the 2016 Global Terrorism Index published by the Institute of Economics and Peace. The higher the position on the ranking is, the bigger the impact of terrorism in the country. Kazakhstan's 94th place puts it in a group of countries with the lowest impact of terrorism.

Banned terrorist organizations

On 12 October 2006 the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

approved a revised list of banned terrorist organizations and the Prosecutor General released the list. The terrorist organizations the government has banned are the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Islamic Radical Front of Kazakhstan,

Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami Hizb ut-Tahrir (Arabicحزب التحرير (Translation: Party of Liberation) is an international, political organization which describes its ideology as Islam, and its aim the re-establishment of the Islamic Khilafah (Caliphate) to resume Isl ...

Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins The Islamic Jihad Union (IJU; ) is a militant Islamist organization founded in 2002 as a splinter group of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). Headquartered in North Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghan ...

, Islamic Party of Eastern Turkestan, Kurdistan Workers Party, Boz Kurt,

Lashkar-e-Toiba Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT; ur, ; literally ''Army of the Good'', translated as ''Army of the Righteous'', or ''Army of the Pure'' and alternatively spelled as ''Lashkar-e-Tayyiba'', ''Lashkar-e-Toiba'', ''Lashkar-i-Taiba'', ''Lashkar-i-Tayyeba'') ...

, Social Reforms Society (in

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

), Asbat an-Ansar (in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

, and the

Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...

.Kazakhstan Updates List Of Banned Terrorist Groups
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty When the Supreme Court initially added the JCMA and six other organizations to its list in March 2006, critics said that the Muslim Brotherhood and Lashkar-e-Toiba do not operate in Kazakhstan on a level sufficient to justify inclusion in the list. Saulebek Zhamkenuly, press secretary for the Prosecutor-General's Office, said, "It doesn't mean all these organizations are active in Kazakhstan. The decision to ban them is a preventive measure. These organizations are considered as terrorist in the

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, the United States,

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, Uzbekistan, and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

."Kazakhstan: Government moves to add Hizb ut Tahrir to list of terror groups
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty The Supreme Court added Aum Shinrikyo and the

East Turkestan Liberation Organization The East Turkestan Liberation Organization (ETLO) was a secessionist Uyghur organization that advocated for an independent Uyghur state named East Turkestan in the Western Chinese province known as Xinjiang. The organization was established in T ...

to the list of banned terrorist organizations on 17 November 2006. Both organizations have members in Kazakhstan.Uyghur group added to Kazakh terror list
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty

Ties between designated terrorist organizations

Hizb-ut-Tahrir is banned in

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

, and

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the east. ...

. The

Kyrgyz government The politics of Kyrgyzstan, officially known as the Kyrgyz Republic, takes place in the framework of a presidential system representative democratic republic, whereby the President is head of state and the Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers is ...

banned HuT after it declared a

jihad Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...

against Kyrgyz police on 19 July 2006. Kyrgyz and Uzbek government officials say that there are ties between Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, and the Islamic extremist group

Akromiya Akromiya (sometimes referd as ''Akramiya'', in Russian : Акрамия) is an Islamist organization founded by Akrom Yo‘ldoshev. Akromiya broke away from Hizb ut-Tahrir, a terrorist organization according to the Kazakhstan government, when Akr ...

.Central Asia: Tashkent And Bishkek Working To Combat 'Terrorism'
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty Kazakh Prosecutor-General

Rashid Tusupbekov Rashid Toleutaiuly Tusupbekov ( kk, Рашид Төлеутайұлы Түсіпбеков; ''Raşid Töleutaiūly Tüsıpbekov'') is a Kazakh politician who was the Prosecutor General of Kazakhstan.

Aum Shinrikyo and East Turkestan Liberation Organization

Askar Amerkhanov, deputy chief of staff of Kazakhstan's counterterrorism center, asked the Prosecutor-General's Office and the Supreme Court to add Aum Shinrikyo and the

to the list of banned terrorist organizations on 15 September 2006. Amerkhanov said the National Security Committee (KNB) prevented an Aum Shinrikyo cell from forming in Kyzylorda.Kazakh security agency seeks ban on two 'terror' groups
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty The Supreme Court added both organizations to the list on 17 November 2006.

Al-Qaeda and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan

From 28 March-1 April 2004 two

suicide bomb A suicide attack is any violent attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have occurred throughout histor ...

ers set off bombs in

Tashkent Tashkent (, uz, Toshkent, Тошкент/, ) (from russian: Ташкент), or Toshkent (; ), also historically known as Chach is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of ...

, Uzbekistan. The bombings killed 47 people, 33 of whom were militants and 14 who were bystanders and policemen.Tashkent Terrorists. The al Qaeda allies behind the attacks
National Review Online The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an organization affiliated with Al-Qaeda, and Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility.

Uzbek President The president of the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Oʻzbekiston Respublikasining Prezidenti, Ўзбекистон Республикасининг Президенти) is the head of state and executive authority in Uzbekistan. The office of Pre ...

Islam Karimov claimed the perpetrators were ex-members of Hizb-ut-Tahrir.Terror in Tashkent
The Heritage Foundation The Uzbek security service's intelligence, according to ''

Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, "Truth") is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most influential papers in the co ...

'', proves the involvement of Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins members. Tashkent police found a mobile phone used by the terrorists at the site of one of the bombings. The police later found that the terrorists had called associates in Kazakhstan. Police from both nations agreed to work together in investigating the bombing.Tashkent blasts are blamed on Islamic radicals
Pravda
Payvand According to Tanya Costello, an analyst for

Eurasia Group Eurasia Group is a political risk consultancy founded in 1998 by Ian Bremmer. History Eurasia Group reports on emerging markets including frontier and developed economies, in addition to establishing practices focused on geo-technology and energ ...

, the IMU has been nearly destroyed by the counter-terrorism efforts of the U.S., Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. While Al-Qaeda has never said it has a direct presence in Kazakhstan, journalists raised the issue in a press conference held in February 2004 following a meeting between U.S. Defense Secretary

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Presi ...

and Kazakh Defense Minister Mukhtar Altynbayev. The

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...

had recently arrested

Abdallah Tohtasinovich Magrupov The United States Department of Defense acknowledges holding four Kazakh detainees in Guantanamo. A total of 778 detainees have been held in extrajudicial detention in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba since the camps opened on January ...

, a suspected terrorist of Kazakh ethnicity, and his citizenship was unclear. Altynbayev expressed skepticism over the presence of Al-Qaeda members, saying the situation is "seriously controlled by the special services."Secretary Rumsfeld Joint Availability with the Kazakh Minister of Defense
U.S. Department of Defense

Hamas

The Union of Muslims of Kazakhstan invited Hamas leaders to Kazakhstan in 2006.Kazakhstan exacerbates "religious threat" by maneuvering between Beijing and Washington
Jamestown Foundation

Hizb-ut-Tahrir

Hizb-ut-Tahrir first appeared in Kazakhstan in the south in the 1990s. Beibut Saparaly, a cleric at the Astana-based Kaganat religious education center, said in March 2005 that the "idea to create a caliphate is supported by many youth. Some years ago, we heard that

Hizb ut-Tahrir Hizb ut-Tahrir (Arabicحزب التحرير (Translation: Party of Liberation) is an international, political organization which describes its ideology as Islam, and its aim the re-establishment of the Islamic Khilafah (Caliphate) to resume Isl ...

had support in

Shymkent Shymkent (; Шымкент, Şymkent), known until 1993 as Chimkent ( uz, Çımkent, چىمكېنت; Yañalif: Çimkent ()); russian: Чимкент, translit=Chimkent (), is a city in Kazakhstan. It is near the border with Uzbekistan. It is one ...

and in

Pavlodar Pavlodar ( ; ) is a city in northeastern Kazakhstan and the capital of Pavlodar Region. It is located 450 km northeast of the national capital Astana and 405 km southeast of the Russian city of Omsk along the Irtysh River. , the cit ...

. But lately, particularly after Qurban-Ayt, we learned that izb ut-Tahrirleaflets had been distributed in all mosques in the southern capital of Almaty." Kazakh police have arrested HuT members in southern Kazakhstan for several years, but the first arrests of members in northern Kazakhstan were in 2004. ''Novoye Pokoleniye'' has attributed the popularity of Hizb-ut-Tahrir to the social and economic conditions of the populace. One journalist wrote that illiteracy,

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...

, and the "proximity of trouble spots allow various types of 'teachers' to act very freely there." Additionally, as "one head cell is cut off," it is "replaced by several new ones."Kazakhstan Journalists Gather Information on War Against Terrorism
UCLA International Institute The Kazakh government found the first Hizb-ut-Tahrir cell in Kentai in 2000. The HuT presence in Kazakhstan then spread in the country, primarily in southern Kazakhstan.Terrorism and Nationalism: Twin threats to Kazakhstan
Eurasia Daily Monitor Rashid Tusupbekov, the Prosecutor General, asked the Supreme Court to add Hizb ut-Tahrir to the list of banned terrorist organizations on 17 March 2005, citing its ties to Al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
Embassy of Kazakhstan to the USA and Canada Police arrested Kuanysh Bekzhanov, a 20-year-old student of law at the Humanitarian Institute, in November 2003 at Ordabasy square for distributing Hizb ut-Tahrir pamphlets. Upon a further search police uncovered 200 Hizb ut-Tahrir leaflets. Judge Adis Kerimshiyev of the Shymkent municipal court found Bekzhanov guilty on 4 August of violating part 2 of Article 164 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, "agitation of social, ethnic, clan, racial, or religious animosity," and Article 337, "creation or participation in the activities of illegal public associations." The court sentenced him to two years in prison. Bombings in Uzbekistan in the spring and summer of 2004 killed more than 50 people. The Uzbek government attributed the bombings to HuT terrorists. Suspects said they were trained at a terrorist camp in Kazakhstan. The Kazakh government denied the allegation, but said the defendants had at one point lived in the Shymkent Oblast, which they reached by illegally crossing the border. On 5 February 2005 police in Kentai, Kazakhstan found Hizb-ut-Tahrir books and leaflets in the attic of a resident's home. The books were written in Uzbek, Russian, and Kazakh. Police charged the resident with distributing extremist literature and encouraging religious strife. According to Marat Yermukanov of '' Eurasia Daily Monitor'', "reports say" the resident "bought these publications at the market... to distribute the teachings of Hizb-ut-Tahrir" in Kentai. Kentai is "fertile ground" for Hizb-ut-Tahrir because of the poor economy and the government's "indifference to their woes." Yermukanov said that most police raids targeted HuT cells. Three days later, on 8 February, Almaty police shut down an HuT printing facility, taking 12,400 leaflets and 53 booklets from an apartment building. Hibratulla Doskaliyev, head of the South Kazakhstan Region interior department, criticized the government's handling of Hizb ut-Tahrir's growing popularity in August 2006. Doskaliyev said, "This is a very serious issue and only 14 fficersare dealing with it. This is totally insufficient." The department subsequently increased personnel monitoring Hizb ut-Tahrir activity.(Corr) Kazakh police boost planned over growing Hezb-e Tahrir influence in south
BBC News Beksultan Sarsenov, first deputy head of the CIS Anti-Terrorist Center, said Hizb-ut-Tahrir and Uyghur nationalists were the greatest threats to Kazakhstan's security. Sarsenov said that a "small group" of religious bigots and nationalists "think the country is only for Kazakhs" and "nationalist Russians who are convinced that they have the right to certain part of Kazakhstan's territory" threaten Kazakhstan. In December 2005 the KNB extradited Rustam Chagilov, a suspected terrorist, to Russia. KNB officials detained an ethnic Uzbek and alleged member of HuT in Taraz, South Kazakhstan in April 2006. The KNB accused him of organizing an HuT cell Qoqon, Uzbekistan and extradited him to Uzbekistan. Kenzhenbulat Beknazarov, spokesman for the KNB announced on 22 December 2006 in Astana that an HuT cell-network active in multiple towns had been shut down. Beknazarov said, "Computers, more than 25,000 pamphlets, some 70 copies of religious extremist books and advanced printing equipment were confiscated during our searches." Routes used to smuggle in extremist literature and foreign funding were also shut down.Hizb ut-Tahrir network dismantled in Kazakhstan
Interfax-Religion

Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins

In 2004 National Security Committee (KNB) officials claimed they had shut down the Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins. However, in 2006, they again claimed to have foiled a terrorist plot orchestrated by JCAM members.Terror network claims unsettle Kazakh activists
ISN Security Watch

2004

Vladimir Bozhko, first deputy chairman of Kazakhstan's National Security Committee (KNB), announced in a press conference on 11 November 2004 that the KNB had dismantled the Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins, arresting nine citizens of Kazakhstan and four of Uzbekistan. Police confiscated weapons, forged documents, a videotape of a speech given by

Osama Bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until Killing of Osama bin Laden, his death in 2011. Ideologically a Pan-Islamism ...

, and what ''Radio Free Europe'' called "extremist

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

." Four women, trained as suicide bombers, were detained. The government discovered that JCAM recruited 50 citizens of Uzbekistan and 20 of Kazakhstan since mid-2002. JCAM is, like the IMU, affiliated with

Al Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

. Zhakshybek Biimurzaev, headed JCAM's operations in Kazakhstan while Ahmad Bekmirzaev, headed operations in Uzbekistan. Both served in the IMU. Biimurzaev has been arrested by Uzbek police and the National Security Service of

. Uzbek police killed Bekmirzaev in a shoot-out near

on 30 March. Biimurzaev is reported as having said, "This year there were three terror attacks in Tashkent in July. I organized them on the instruction of my amir Usman. Three Kazakh citizens took part in them. I was opposed to this, but the amir ordered it." Usman later ordered Biimurzaev to assassinate what ''Radio Free Europe'' referred to as a "high-ranking Uzbek official." Uzbek officials said Avaz Shoyusupov, a Kazakh citizen, is one of the suicide bombers who died in the 30 July attacks. Bekmirzaev's wife, Makhira Ibragimova, and Isa Eruov, Kazakh citizens, killed themselves in suicide bombing attacks in Uzbekistan in spring 2004. Police caught Aidos Usmonov, an Uzbek citizen and an aide of Biimurzaev, in Pavlodar, Kazakhstan. Usmonov had recently returned from

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, where he allegedly recruited for JCAM. The Kazakh government extradited Uzbek terrorist suspects arrested in Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan. ''

Deutsche Welle Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave" in English), abbreviated to DW, is a German public, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the German federal tax budget. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite television service con ...

'' and the Uzbek government reported that 15 suspects charged in relation to the Tashkent bombings were trained in terrorist camps in South Waziristan,

and in "private apartments" in

, and other cities, in Kazakhstan. Deputy Chairman Bozhko disagreed, saying "there were no camps and bases for training terrorists on the territory of our country."

2006

President Nazarbayev on 18 April 2006 said the KNB needed to do more to protect the nation's security. Sergei Minenkov, National Security Committee member in charge of counter-terrorism, announced the day after that a KNB-Interior Ministry operation had prevented a major terrorist attack with assistance from the security services of an unnamed foreign nation and again shut down JCAM, calling it a "criminal gang set up for terrorist activities." Some interpreted Minenkov's statements as a response to Nazarbayev's criticism. Minenkov said the plot involved bombing the offices of security officials, government buildings, and public safety facilities. The ten suspects, who allegedly acted on instructions from a foreign nation, were charged with 'instigating religious strife' and illegal possession of firearms. When the operation took place, JCAM members were, according to ''ISN Security Watch'', "monitoring Kyrgyz political activities." 10 JCAM members in

Almaty Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to ...

were arrested and police confiscated weapons and extremist books and tapes. The suspects were recruiting Kazakh citizens and establishing terror bases when they were arrested. Minenkov said, "Foreign ideologists of terrorism recommended attacking public places and strategically important infrastructure facilities" in letters found by police. Seized documents included instructions on explosive construction and maps of targets. Serikbai Alibayev of For a Just Kazakhstan opposition coalition said, "The National Security Committee's accusation against the opposition—that it could have joined the terrorist group—is nothing less than blame based on nothing. According to our laws and the constitution, law-enforcement agencies immediately should open a case against the National Security Committee and start an investigation. They should be brought to court for saying that—they are violating our constitution." Zauresh Battalova, also of For a Just Kazakhstan, said, "The National Security Committee is a tool in the hands of the authorities. Today, the National Security Committee is following the authorities' order to discredit those who really care about people in order to stop them. It's the National Security Committee that should be brought to justice. They have to answer for their activities, the activities of the special Arystan unit, and the deaths of Altynbek and Zamanbek. Problems cannot be solved by Dutbayev's resignation alone." The KNB discovered and disrupted a terror cell in Stepnogorsk on 16 November. They arrested eleven Islamic terrorists, who were planning on carrying out attacks to create an Islamist republic in Central Asia. One of the terrorists shot at police officers as they broke up the cell.Eleven Terrorist Suspects Arrested In Kazakhstan
Playfuls Business and World On 27 December the KNB broke up the "Stepnogorsk zhamaat terrorist group," confiscating weapons and literature inciting terrorism. Members of the organization were planning on robbing businesses to fund assassinations of civil servants.
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty In January 2006 convicted JMCA terrorists were sentenced to prison terms ranging from eight to twenty-five years in prison.

2011

In July 2011, nine people suspected of involvement in the killing of two policeman in the northwestern

Aktobe Province The Aktobe Region ( kk, Ақтөбе облысы, Aqtöbe oblysy; russian: Актюбинская область, translit=Aktyubinskaya oblast) is a Regions of Kazakhstan, region of Kazakhstan. The name ''Aktobe'' comes from Kazakh language, Kaz ...

were killed in a firefight with policemen. A Kazakh special forces member was also killed. The region has seen a rise in militant Islamic activity, although there are also grievances involving the police and economic issues. The incident came a few weeks after the first suicide bombing in Kazakhstan in

Aktobe Aktobe ( kz, Ақтөбе, Aqtöbe; russian: Актобе, Aktobe) is a city on the Ilek River in Kazakhstan. It is the administrative center of Aktobe Region. In 2020, it had a population of 500,757 people. Aktobe is located in the west of K ...

. Rahimjan Makhatov blew himself up on May 17 inside the Aktobe offices of the National Security Committee, killing himself and injuring two others. Kazakh authorities said this was related to criminal activities rather than Islamic militancy. In November 2011, 4 police officers and a security guard and another civilian were killed by a suicide bomber in the city of Taraz. The security guard was killed in an attack on an armoury where two guns were stolen, then militant killed two police officers with these weapons and then blew it when he was arrested killing another police officer.

Tablighi Jamaat

Tablighi Jamaat, an Islamic missionary organization that is banned in Uzbekistan and has alleged ties to Al-Qaeda, is not considered a terrorist organization by the Government of Kazakhstan, but some members have been fined and deported for violating Kazakhstan's laws on missionary activity. Askar Amerkhanov, head of the National Security Committee Secret Police's Anti-terrorism Center, said, "It is true that at first we did have suspicions that Tabligh was an extremist organisation. But having studied its teachings we have concluded that it is simply an Islamic missionary organisation. Tabligh's problem is that its supporters are preaching without having registered with the authorities." Kairat Tulesov, deputy head of the Justice Ministry's Religious Affairs Committee, said, "Tabligh supporters simply have to observe Kazakh law and then they can pursue their activities without hindrance."Kazakhstan: Punished for preaching in mosques
Muslim News

Russian separatism

In November 1999 the KNB arrested 22 people, 12 of whom were Russian citizens, in

Öskemen Oskemen ( kk, Өскемен, translit=Öskemen ), or Ust-Kamenogorsk (russian: Усть-Каменого́рск), is the administrative center of East Kazakhstan Region of Kazakhstan. Population: Name The city has two official names. In the ...

for planning to overthrow the government and seized rifle cartridges and

petrol bomb A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see other names'') is a hand thrown incendiary weapon constructed from a frangible container filled with flammable substances equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with flammab ...

s. On 8 June 2000 the Öskemen court sentenced 13 people, 11 Russians and 2 Kazakhs, convicted of planning to overthrow the local government and of illegal possession of weapons. The court sentenced the leader of the group, Vladimir Kazimirchuk, to 18-years imprisonment. Kazimirchuk allegedly planned to create an independent nation for ethnic Russians in eastern Kazakhstan.Russian 'separatists' highlight ethnic tensions
Online Asia Times Alexander Shushannikov, a member of Ust-Kamenogorsk municipal council, criticized the sentencing, saying the men were not sentenced for "concrete actions. Their guilt was just their intentions." He called it a "show trial."

Almaty airplane bomb

An airport worker discovered a bomb in a plant in the baggage compartment of a

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating with two un ...

that flew from

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, Kazakhstan while unloading baggage on 12 May 2005. The bomb, which at the time of discovery ticked and had wires. Security officials destroyed the package without incident.Unknown group attacked airports and airlines target (May 12, 2005, Kazakhstan)
MIPT Terror Knowledge Base

State terrorism

The

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journa ...

has documented three cases in which the Kazakh government has used harassment and intimidation to silence journalists.Committee to Protect Journalists
/ref> In 2000 ''XXI Vek'' and ''SolDat'', newspapers affiliated with the Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan, were shut down. The Kazakh government arrested Yermurat Bapi, editor of ''Soldat'', charged him with insulting the president.Europe and Central Asian 2000
Committee to Protect Journalists Political opposition leader

Zamanbek Nurkadilov Zamanbek Qalabayuly Nurkadilov ( kz, Заманбек Қалабайұлы Нұрқаділов, ''Zamanbek Qalabaiūly Nūrqadılov''; 15 January 1944 – 11 November 2005) was a Kazakh politician who served as the head of Almaty in Kazakhstan a ...

died on 17 November 2005, a month before presidential elections. Nurkadilov's friend and political ally

Altynbek Sarsenbayev Altynbek Sarsenbayuly ( kk, Алтынбек Сәрсенбайұлы, ''Altynbek Särsenbaiūly''; 12 September 1962 – 11 February 2006) was a Kazakh politician who served in the Government of Kazakhstan before becoming a political oppositi ...

died on 13 February 2006.Kazakhstani assassination trial concludes with guilty verdicts, questions continue
Eurasia Insight While opposition believes that Zamanbek Nurkadilov was murdered by KNB agents, the police proclaimed it as suicide. There were no official proofs provided, neither of the suicide theory nor of the assassination theory.

Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism

Representatives from Australia, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey, and the United States met in

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ar, الرِّبَاط, er-Ribât; ber, ⵕⵕⴱⴰⵟ, ṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan populati ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

on 30–31 October 2006 to discuss the protection of nuclear materials and the prevention of theft by terrorists. One of the first steps of the

Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (GICNT) is an international organization consisting of 89 countries that have endorsed a set of nuclear security principles for nuclear terrorism deterrence, prevention, detection, and response. It ...

is to issue a statement of principles. Kazakhstan gave up its nuclear weapons after the fall of the Soviet Union under the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction program. An anonymous U.S. official said the goal of the initiative is for participating states to "build capacities to prevent the acquisition of sensitive materials by terrorist groups."Twelve states to launch new anti-terror initiative
Tiscali

Literature

The following extremist literature advocating terrorism has been confiscated in Kazakhstan: *''An Open Letter to French President

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...

''Will Kazakh Authorities Avoid Extremist Pitfalls?
Central-Asia Caucasus Institute, Silk Road Studies Program *''Evil Schemes of America'' *''Who is responsible for Tashkent blasts?''

Cooperation with China

Kazakhstan has consistently extradited Uyghur terrorist suspects to China and in 2006 participated in a large-scale, joint counter-terrorism drill.
Uyghur American Association

Chinese delegation visit

Chinese President

Hu Jintao Hu Jintao (born 21 December 1942) is a Chinese politician who served as the 16–17th general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 2002 to 2012, the 6th president of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 2003 to 2013, an ...

led a 150-person delegation to Kazakhstan on 2 July 2005 after visiting

, Russia for four days. The Chinese Government issued a press release saying the Chinese-Kazakh energy and security "relationship deepens constantly." Upon arriving Hu met with President Nazarbayev in an official ceremony. They discussed anti-terrorism, energy, and transportation.China's Hu Arrives In Kazakhstan To Talk Terrorism
Space War

Tian-Shan-1 2006

The governments of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and Kazakhstan held an anti-terror drill, known as the "Tian-Shan-1-2006" drill, from 24–26 August 2006, starting in

, Kazakhstan and ending in

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

, China through the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. The drill is the first time China and Kazakhstan have held anti-terrorism maneuvers. The Collective Security Treaty Organization held exercises in the

Caspian sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...

simultaneously. The simulation lasted for three days and involved Kazakh forces from border patrol, the Interior Ministry, and the Emergency Situations Ministry, and Chinese law enforcement forces and security services. 700 police officials used armed helicopters and anti-riot vehicles to force the 'enemy' into a narrow valley along the border of Kazakhstan and Xinjiang, China after rescuing 'hostages'. About 100 observers from other SCO nation-members attended the exercises.Anti-terror drill targets '3 evil forces'
Uygur American Association The first day of exercises began in Almaty and ended in

Yining YiningThe official spelling according to (), also known as Ghulja ( ug, غۇلجا) or Qulja ( kk, قۇلجا) and formerly Ningyuan (), is a county-level city in Northwestern Xinjiang, People's Republic of China and the seat of the Ili Kazakh A ...

, a city in Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture. When officials of '' Radio Free Europe'' contacted the Foreign and Defense Ministries of both nations, inquiring about the exercises, Islam Dosmailuly, a spokesman for Kazakhstan's National Security Committee, told them he did not "know if he exerciseswill ake placeor not. I'm waiting for information. If he informationgets here, we'll certainly comment on it. But, for now, I have no information." ''

Xinhua Xinhua News Agency (English pronunciation: )J. C. Wells: Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, 3rd ed., for both British and American English, or New China News Agency, is the official state news agency of the People's Republic of China. Xinhua ...

'' reported that the policemen practiced freeing hostages. Some analysts said the simulation practiced securing the Atasu-Alashankou pipeline, which sends petroleum from Kazakhstan to refineries in Xinjiang. Kazakhstan sends about 3.5 million tons through the pipeline annually and wants to increase output to 20 million tons. Konstantin Syroyezhkin, a senior analyst at Kazakhstan's Strategic Studies and Research Institute, said "there are many common threats and these are ell-knownalready. There is

drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

, llegalimmigration, and religious extremism and political extremism. There are a number of threats. And these are counter-terrorism exercises,

gainst Against may refer to: * ''Against'' (album), 1998 album by Brazilian metal band Sepultura ** "Against" (song) the title track song from the Sepultura album *Against (American band), 2006 American thrash band *Against (Australian band) Again ...

international terrorism. Why should they not hold them? Look, there's a mess in Afghanistan; there must be some mutual cooperation in that matter. And anyway, it is not the first time they have held such exercises. Last year, or before last year, it was organized as a planned maneuver, there is nothing suspicious about that." Kazakhstan has held joint counter-terrorism exercises with NATO under the

Partnership for Peace The Partnership for Peace (PfP; french: Partenariat pour la paix) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) program aimed at creating trust between the member states of NATO and other states mostly in Europe, including post-Soviet states; ...

program and the

Collective Security Treaty Organization The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is an intergovernmental military alliance in Eurasia consisting of six post-Soviet states The post-Soviet states, also known as the former Soviet Union (FSU), the former Soviet Republics ...

. Meng Hongwei, Chinese Vice-Minister of Public Security and commander of the Chinese troops for the drill, warned that the "three evil forces" of

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

separatism Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seeking greate ...

and

extremism Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered (by the speaker or by some implied share ...

and increasing cross-border drug trafficking were affecting the region. Vice-Minister Hongwei said, "the exercise will help establish the SCO's active role in maintaining regional security and stability." SCO nation-members plan to hold another series of anti-terrorism exercises in Russia in 2007. Vladimir Boshko, first vice-chairman of the Committee of the National Security of Kazakhstan, said the drill would improve anti-terror cooperation among SCO nation-members.

Cooperation with India

The Kazakh government condemned the 13 December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament saying terrorism is unjustifiable. President Nazarbayev and Indian Prime Minister

Atal Bihari Vajpayee Atal Bihari Vajpayee (; 25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018) was an Indian politician who served three terms as the 10th prime minister of India, first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months fr ...

reaffirmed this message by issuing a joint declaration on 12 February 2002, when Nazarbayev visited India for a state visit, stating that "terrorism annot be justified in any form, for any cause or for any reason used as an excuse... the fight against terrorism has to be global, comprehensive and sustained for the objective of total elimination of terrorism everywhere." They agreed to establish a bilateral joint working group on counter-terrorism and expressed support for the

Karzai administration Hamid Karzai (; Pashto/ fa, حامد کرزی, , ; born 24 December 1957) is an Afghan statesman who served as the fourth president of Afghanistan from July 2002 to September 2014, including as the first elected president of the Islamic Republi ...

and an end to terrorism in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

. During Nazarbayev's five-day visit, the first since 1996, he met with

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

K. R. Narayanan Kocheril Raman Narayanan (27 October 1921 – 9 November 2005) was an Indian statesman, diplomat, academic, and politician who served as the 9th vice president of India, Vice President of India from 1992 to 1997 and 10th President of India fr ...

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Krishan Kant Krishan Kant (28 February 1927 – 27 July 2002) was an Indian politician who served as the tenth vice president of India from 1997 until his death 2002. Formerly, he was the governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1990 to 1997. He was a member of Lok ...

and opposition leader

Sonia Gandhi Sonia Gandhi ('' née'' Maino; born 9 December 1946) is an Indian politician. She is the longest serving president of the Indian National Congress, a social democratic political party, which has governed India for most of its post-independ ...

.India and Kazakhstan: Significant Changes
SAPRA Indian Foundation

Cooperation with international bodies

CICA Declaration on Eliminating Terrorism

Officials from member state of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia met in the first CICA conference in Almaty in June 2002. On 4 June they issued a "Declaration on Eliminating Terrorism and Promoting Dialogue among Civilizations." The Declaration condemns all acts of terrorism as "direct violations of

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

" and recognizes that "all religions of the world reject violence and terrorism." It also expresses support for

UN Security Council Resolution 1373 United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373, adopted unanimously on 28 September 2001, is a counterterrorism measure passed following the 11 September terrorist attacks on the United States. The resolution was adopted under Chapter VII of th ...

.CICA Declaration on Eliminating Terrorism and Promoting Dialogue among Civilizations
Embassy of Kazakhstan to the USA and Canada

Combating money laundering and terrorism financing workshop

The Kazakh government participated in a workshop on fighting

money laundering Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...

and the financing of

, along with officials, including legislators and police officers, from the Global Program against Money Laundering of the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, the

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, prom ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, and the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...

in 2002 from 30 September – 1 October in

Bishkek Bishkek ( ky, Бишкек), ), formerly Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is also the administrative centre of the Chüy Region. The region surrounds the city, although the city itself is not part of ...

, Kyrgyzstan and 2 October and 3 October in Astana, Kazakhstan. The workshop fulfilled part of an "Action Plan" agreed upon in December 2001 in a conference in Bishkek on security in Central Asia.Workshops in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan Discuss Measures Against Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime In Astana the Deputy Chairman of the Committee on National Security of Kazakhstan advocated passing a law prohibiting money laundering in Kazakhstan per the United Nations' goal of banning money laundering in every country by 2003. Participants gave recommendations to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan on changing legislation and bureaucracy to better fight illegal financing practices.

International Conference on Peace and Harmony

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, and

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

leaders met with the President Nazarbayev,

Kyrgyz President The president of Kyrgyzstan, officially the president of the Kyrgyz Republic (russian: Президент Киргизской Республики; ky, Кыргыз Республикасынын Президенти), is the head of state an ...

Kurmanbek Bakiyev, and Tajik President

Emomali Rahmonov Emomali Rahmon (; born Emomali Sharipovich Rahmonov, tg, Эмомалӣ Шарӣпович Раҳмонов, script=Latn, italic=no, Emomalī Sharīpovich Rahmonov; ; born 5 October 1952) has been the 3rd President of Tajikistan since 16 Novem ...

, and senior government officials from

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

, Afghanistan and

, in Almaty on 13 February 2003 for the International Conference on Peace and Harmony. President Bush said in a 12 February letter to Nazarbayev, "The United States strongly supports the Conference's objective of fostering peace and stability through dialogue among people of different nationalities and faiths. All peace-loving people share a deep interest in advancing religious liberty and tolerance, stemming hatred, and eliminating the threat of terrorism."Peace and Harmony Conference Establishes Permanent Forum for Peace and Stability
Embassy of Kazakhstan to the USA and Canada Over 70 Jewish leaders participated, including

Malcolm Hoenlein Malcolm Hoenlein has been the executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations since June 1986. He is the founding executive director of the Greater New York Conference on Soviet Jewry and the Jewish ...

, executive vice chairman, and Mortimer Zuckerman, chairman, of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations. Zuckerman expressed "gratitude to all present for your fight against all forms of terrorism and extremism."

United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

s Sam Brownback,

Orrin Hatch Orrin Grant Hatch (March 22, 1934 – April 23, 2022) was an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Utah from 1977 to 2019. Hatch's 42-year Senate tenure made him the longest-serving Republican U.S. senator ...

, Mary Landrieu, and representatives

Robert Wexler Robert Ira Wexler (born January 2, 1961) is an American politician and lawyer from Florida. He is the president of the Washington-based S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace. Wexler was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Represe ...

, Gary Ackerman, Henry Waxman, Joseph Pitts and others, signed separate letters of support for the conference, calling it "critical to worldwide efforts to counter extremism." It sent "a strong signal that the present and future course of the

Muslim world The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. I ...

will not be controlled by those that would propagate hate, fear and murder, such as Al Qaeda, but by those nations and people who respect and promote peace, tolerance and

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...

." Participants in the conference established a permanent "Forum for Peace and Stability," with headquarters in Kazakhstan. Nazarbayev said the Forum laid the "foundation for creating a mechanism for permanent dialogue in the name of stability, security and peace in the 21st century. New realities require new approaches to thinking of new principles of solving the problems." President Rakhmonov said, "The basis for the dialogue of civilizations lies in the unity of values preached by all religions. We must not allow attempts to pit civilizations against each other to succeed."

United Nations Terrorism Committee conference in Almaty

Officials from the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

Counter-Terrorism Committee The Counter-Terrorism Committee is a subsidiary body of the United Nations Security Council. In the wake of the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 1373, wh ...

met in Almaty from 26–28 January 2005. The officials discussed terrorism, terrorism financing, money laundering, arms trafficking, illicit fund transfers, and fake charities in

Central Eurasia Inner Asia refers to the northern and landlocked regions spanning North, Central and East Asia. It includes parts of western and northeast China, as well as southern Siberia. The area overlaps with some definitions of 'Central Asia', mostly the h ...

. Andrei Denisov, the

n ambassador to the United Nations, chaired the conference. On 26 January he said, "the reality is that the threat of terrorism cannot be eradicated completely in the near future. It will continue to reproduce itself one way or the other. But nations can and should make every effort to limit the opportunities for this threat to realize itself, and this is what we are doing, and this is what we are going to discuss during our conference." He also said "terrorism has deep roots in Central Asia." President Nazarbayev 's said in his opening statement, "Kazakhstan's national security is closely linked to the security of the Central Asian region. And security in Central Asia should be considered an integral component of security in urasia The Central Asian region should be part of a Eurasian security system that is part of a global security system."Kazakhstan: UN Terrorism Committee Meets In Almaty Amid Warnings Over Human Rights
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty Boris Mylnikov, head of the CIS Antiterrorism Center, announced a list of terrorist organizations recognized by the CSTO and SCO.

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

released an open letter to the CTC, calling on CTC nations to recognize the importance of respecting

while fighting terrorism. Rachel Denber, acting HRW director for Europe and Central Asia, expressed concerns about

Human rights in Kazakhstan Human rights in Kazakhstan are uniformly described as poor by independent observers. Human Rights Watch says that "Kazakhstan heavily restricts freedom of assembly, speech, and religion. In 2014, authorities closed newspapers, jailed or fined do ...

. HRW opposes the Kazakh government's extradition of Muslims to China because they may be sentenced to death.

Cooperation with Russia

Yury Baluyevsky Army General Yury Nikolayevich Baluyevsky (russian: link=no, Юрий Николаевич Балуевский; born 9 January 1947 at Truskavets in the Ukrainian SSR) is the former First Deputy Minister of Defense and Chief of the General Staff ...

, First Deputy Defense Minister and Chief of the Russian

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

, gave a speech to the chiefs of general staffs of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine in February 2006 prior to the fifteenth anniversary of the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States. He called on them to cooperate in fighting against "terrorism, cross-border crime and the drug mafia." The governments of Georgia, Moldova and Turkmenistan chose to not send representatives to the meeting.Russian general for joint CIS fight against terror, crime, drugs
RIA Novosti At the same time Kazakhstan has extradited terrorist suspects to Russia. FSB and KNB agents caught Vakha Izmailov, suspected of involvement in the

Beslan school attack The Beslan school siege (also referred to as the Beslan school hostage crisis or the Beslan massacre) was a terrorist attack that started on 1 September 2004, lasted three days, involved the imprisonment of more than 1,100 people as hostages ( ...

and of other attacks in

Ingushetia Ingushetia (; russian: Ингуше́тия; inh, ГӀалгӏайче, Ghalghayče), officially the Republic of Ingushetia,; inh, Гӏалгӏай Мохк, Ghalghay Moxk is a republic of Russia located in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe. ...

, in a joint operation in Kazakhstan. The Kazakh KNB then transferred him to the Russian FSB.

Cooperation with Singapore

Oral Mukhamedzhanov, Speaker of Kazakhstan's Lower House of Parliament, met with Singaporean President

Sellapan Ramanathan Sellapan Ramanathan (; 3 July 1924 – 22 August 2016),. often known as S. R. Nathan, was a Singaporean politician who served as the sixth president of Singapore between 1999 and 2011. He was also the longest-serving president in Singapore's hi ...

on 31 October 2006. They discussed international terrorism and increasing cooperation between the two nations in counter-terrorism. Speaker Mukhamedzhanov visited

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

after Singaporean Parliament Speaker

Abdullah Tarmugi Abdullah bin Tarmugi ( Jawi: عبدالله بن ترموڬي; born 25 August 1944) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore between 2002 and 2011. Early life Born to a Javanese father and a Chines ...

invited him.Kazakhstan Speaker, President Nathan exchange views on terrorism
Channel News Asia

Cooperation with the United Arab Emirates

Askar Musinov, Kazakhstan's ambassador to the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, met with Sayf Bin-Zayid al Nuhayyan, the Interior Minister of the UAE, on 29 November 2006. They discussed cooperation in fighting

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

, drug trafficking, extradition of suspects, and terrorism.Kazakh envoy, UAE minister note need to fight terrorism, drugs
BBC News

Cooperation with the United States

Cooperation with the United States in regional counter-terrorism and the U.S.-led War in Iraq elicited praise from Secretary of Defense

, Senator

Conrad Burns Conrad Ray Burns (January 25, 1935 – April 28, 2016) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Montana and later was a lobbyist. He was only the second Republican popularly elected to represent Montana in the Senate ...

, Congressman

Dennis Rehberg Dennis Ray Rehberg (born October 5, 1955) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party. He served as the Lieutenant Governor of Montana from 1991 to 1997 and as the U.S. representative for from 2001 to 2013. Rehberg was the Repu ...

, and other U.S. government officials.U.S. legislators thank Kazakhstan for help in terror, war, Iraq
United States State Department

Response to the September 11, 2001 attacks

After the

September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

Kazakh President The President of Kazakhstan is the head of state elected by popular vote to serve a five-year-term. The president appoints the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan (head of government) and first deputy prime minister. Leaders of the Kazakh Khanate (Kha ...

Nursultan Nazarbayev sent a message to

United States President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United State ...

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

expressing "indignation about terrorist acts that resulted in loss of numerous lives." The "civilized community must unite and take effective measures to fight international terrorism. All the Kazakhstan people sympathize with the American people in their grief and mourn aver the tragedy."Statement by Colonel General M.K. Altynbayev, Minister of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan, at the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in Defence Ministers session
North Atlantic Treaty Organization

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

officials met with Kazakhstan Security Council officials "to take all the necessary measures to protect U.S. citizens staying in Kazakhstan" in September 2001 following the attacks. KNB Chairman

Marat Tazhin Marat Mukhanbetkazyuly Tajin ( kk, Марат Мұханбетқазыұлы Тәжин, ''Marat Mūhanbetqazyūly Täjin''; born 8 April 1960) is a Kazakh politician. He served as the Foreign Minister in the Government of Kazakhstan from 2007 to ...

pledged the government would " dopttougher measures to deport illegal migrants nKazakhstan."
Brassey's International Intelligence Yearbook: 2003 Edition
' According to the

Center for Defense Information The Center for Defense Information (CDI) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization based in Washington, D.C. It specialized in analyzing and advising on military matters. History The Center for Defense Information was founded in 1971 by an indepen ...

, the Kazakh government has been "extremely supportive fthe U.S.-led war against terrorism." The government offered the use of a major airport for

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...

. Over 800 U.S. flights over Kazakh territory were approved and went ahead. CDI's profile of Kazakhstan credits security forces for "step ngup efforts to protect U.S. government facilities and oil facilities with U.S. private investment" and pledging to "freeze the assets of terrorists identified on the U.S. designated terrorist asset-freeze list." The U.S. officially gave the Kazakh government USD $52,893,000 million in 2002, $47 million in 2003, and $36.2 million in 2004.Kazakhstan, U.S. Military Assistance Prior to September 11, 2001
Center for Defense Information In addition, U.S. Government agencies spent $92 million in assistance programs in Kazakhstan in 2003.
U.S. Department of State Three Kazakh citizens, Yaqub Abahanov,

Abdulrahim Kerimbakiev The United States Department of Defense acknowledges holding four Kazakh detainees in Guantanamo. A total of 778 detainees have been held in extrajudicial detention in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba since the camps opened on January ...

, and

, all born in Semey, Kazakhstan, are held in extrajudicial detention in the United States' Guantanamo Bay detainment camp, in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

for alleged ties to the Taliban. Additionally, Uzbek citizen and Guantánamo prisoner

Ilkham Turdbyavich Batayev Ilkham Turdbyavich Batayev or Elham Battayav (born 7 November 1973) was held in extrajudicial detention in the United States Guantanamo Bay detainment camps, in Cuba. His Guantanamo Internment Serial Number was 84. He was born in Abaye, Kazakhst ...

's birthplace is Abaye, Kazakhstan.List of Individuals Detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba from January 2002 through May 15, 2006
U.S. Department of Defense In a speech given on 19 December 2001 at the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council during the Defence Ministers session, Mukhtar Altynbayev, the Kazakh

Minister of Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

and General of the Kazakh Army, said the attacks "demonstrated that international terrorism has no borders and represents a threat to all the world community." He reaffirmed Kazakhstan's will to fight terrorism and the need to "punish" terrorists and their sponsors. Addressing the possibility, raised by North Atlantic Treaty Organization experts," of using Kazakh airfields for counterterrorist operations, he said there were "other practical issues under consideration," but that Kazakhstan would commit to providing humanitarian assistance to

Afghans Afghans ( ps, افغانان, translit=afghanan; Persian/ prs, افغان ها, translit=afghānhā; Persian: افغانستانی, romanized: ''Afghanistani'') or Afghan people are nationals or citizens of Afghanistan, or people with ancestry f ...

United States air bases

In 2002 a

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

diplomat accused the United States Government of trying to secure a defunct air base, originally used by the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

specifically for theoretical military operations against China, near

Semey Semey ( kk, Семей, Semei, سەمەي; cyrl, Семей ), until 2007 known as Semipalatinsk (russian: Семипала́тинск) and in 1917–1920 as Alash-kala ( kk, Алаш-қала, ''Alaş-qala''), is a city in eastern Kazakhst ...

in eastern Kazakhstan. A high-ranking Kazakh Defense Ministry official said the U.S. Government, as part of its anti-terrorism operations in

, had requested the use of military bases in

Taraz Taraz ( kz, Тараз, تاراز, translit=Taraz ; known to Europeans as Talas) is a city and the administrative center of Jambyl Region in Kazakhstan, located on the Talas (river), Talas (Taraz) River in the south of the country near the borde ...

and

Taldykorgan Taldykorgan ( kk, Талдықорған/Taldyqorğan; russian: Талдыкорган), known as ''Taldy-Kurgan'' until 1993, is the capital (called an administrative center) of Zhetysu Region, Kazakhstan. According to the 2010 Kazakh Census Res ...

. Ibragim Alibekov, a journalist for '' Radio Free Europe'', characterized

Nursultan Nazarbayev's support for the "anti-terrorism campaign" as cautious and "hesitant on the implementation of concrete cooperation measures."Kazakhstan Under Pressure To Choose One Strategic Partner
EurasiaNet However, the National Coalition Supporting Soviet Jewry applauds Kazakhstan for playing "a vital role in U.S.-led efforts to combat international terrorism."Kazakhstan Country Page
National Conference on Soviet Jewry President Bush called Kazakhstan a "strategic partner of the United States in Central Asia" and said the United States wanted to expand anti-terrorism cooperation.U.S. Reviewing Options in Central Asia
Eurasia Daily Monitor Alleged U.S. attempts to acquire bases were criticized by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, who said such actions were unjustifiable, and Russian

State Duma The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper house ...

Speaker Gennady Seleznev. An anonymous expert within the Kazakh Defense Ministry said that "of all the assistance azakhstancan offer towards military counter-terrorism operations—allowing use of our airfields, opening air corridors and sharing intelligence information—the last would be the least risky for Kazakhstan. Allowing the use of airfields means going into direct confrontation with the Taliban, and that is not a good scenario in our situation." An anonymous, high-ranking Foreign Ministry official said "the influx of refugees" created by U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan "is one problem, but the greater problem is that terrorists and militants might flee northward disguised as civilians." Professor Murat Abdirov, director of the International Relations Institute of Eurasian University, said, "Kazakhstan cannot stay away from the international anti-terrorism coalition, but we should proceed with caution."Kazakhstan tries to balance disparate interests
EurasiaNet The Kazakh government did offer the use of a major airport for military operations, but three years later, with

U.S. military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

operations against the Taliban insurgency in

continuing, General

John Abizaid John Philip Abizaid (born April 1, 1951) is a retired United States Army general and former United States Central Command (CENTCOM) commander who served as the United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 2019 to 2021. Abizaid retired after 34 ...

, head of

U.S. Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...

, said on 3 May 2005 that the

did not "expect to open a military base in Kazakhstan unless a tense situation emerges in the region, under which the Kazakh government requests the U.S. armed forces to do so."No U.S. Base in Kazakhstan– Central Command Chief
MOSNEWS

Cooperation with Uzbekistan

While the Uzbek government complained in 2004 that Islamic terrorists were training in southern Kazakhstan, an allegation the Kazakh government denied, cooperation between the two countries has been strong as both states face a common threat.
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty

Andijan massacre

Nazarbayev, while on a state visit to

, told

Islam Karimov that the

Uzbek government The Republic of Uzbekistan is a presidential constitutional republic, whereby the President of Uzbekistan is head of state. Executive power is exercised by the government and by the Prime Minister of Uzbekistan. Legislative power is vested in t ...

's actions in quelling unrest in the Uzbek city of

Andijan Andijan (sometimes spelled Andijon or Andizhan in English) ( uz, Andijon / Андижон / ئەندىجان; fa, اندیجان, ''Andijân/Andīǰān''; russian: Андижан, ''Andižan'') is a city in Uzbekistan. It is the administrative, ...

on 12 and 13 May 2005 helped "protect the peace of 26 million Uzbekistanis. A different outcome would have destabilized the region today." He said that because terrorists had taken over government buildings and prisons, Karimov could not respond to the unrest differently, and other governments had responded similarly in the past. The Uzbek government attributed the unrest to Islamic extremist groups recognized as terrorist organizations in Uzbekistan. The Uzbek government estimated 187 people, made up of 94 terrorists, 60 civilians, 31 policemen, and two others died, and 76 terrorists were injured. Human rights groups dispute the government's estimate, accusing Uzbek security forces of killing about 700 civilians.Authorities' actions during Andijan riot justified - Nazarbayev
RIA Novosti

Extradition of terrorist suspects

On 5 July 2005

called upon the Kazakh government to refrain from handing over Lutfullo Shamsudinov, the Andijan representative for the Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan, then held in Almaty, to the Uzbek government. The Office of the

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...

had given Shamsudinov

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

status and planned to resettle him when Kazakh authorities detained him on 4 July. Earlier that day President Karimov visited Kazakhstan along with other regional nations' representatives as part of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting. The Uzbek government requested Shamsudinov's extradition, charging him with five criminal charges including premeditated murder. Holly Cartner, executive director of the Europe and Central Asia division of Human Rights Watch, said, "Kazakhstan should step forward and protect this brave man. Instead of that, the authorities seem ready to hand over a refugee to be tortured, in blatant violation of

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

." In response to statements made by a representative for the Almaty city prosecutor's office, in which the representative called Shamsudinov a terrorist, Cartner said, "The terrorist accusation is a perversion of international concerns about terrorism and an attempt to block international support for Shamsudinov. In reality, he is someone who worked tirelessly towards the

rule of law The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannica ...

in Uzbekistan." Russia also deported an asylum seeker to Uzbekistan, Rustam Muminov, who Uzbek authorities accuse of involvement in the Andijan unrest and membership in a religious extremist organization,Russia Deports Asylum Seeker to Uzbekistan Despite Death Penalty Threat
MOS News and Kyrgyzstan deported five Andijan-refugees—Jahongir Maqsudov, Yoqub Toshboev, Odiljon Rahimov, Rasuljon Pirmatov, and Fayoz Tojihalilov—to Uzbekistan in early August 2006.
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty In March 1998 the Uzbek government accused Obidkhon Qori Nazarov, an

Imam Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...

, of religious extremism, terrorism, and membership in the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. Nazarov fled to Kazakhstan, leaving behind his wife, son, and three brothers, all of whom have been imprisoned or disappeared, though his wife has been released.Uzbekistan: Dissident Imam reaches safety after eight years in hiding
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty John MacLeod, a senior editor for the Institute for War and Peace Reporting who met Nazarov in 1996, disputed the charges. He said Nazarov is "really a part of an earlier phase of events in Uzbekistan when the state religion was entirely in confrontation with independent Imams and

Mullah Mullah (; ) is an honorific title for Shia and Sunni Muslim clergy or a Muslim mosque leader. The term is also sometimes used for a person who has higher education in Islamic theology and sharia law. The title has also been used in some Miz ...

s such as Obidkhon and a number of others." Rao said, "If we had found him associated with terrorism or extremism we would have excluded him. We believe that he is a refugee needing an international protection. That's how we provided him the refugee status and protection." The UNHCR gave Nazarov refugee status when he contacted them in November 2006. Nazarov, along with some members of his family, were flown out of Kazakhstan to a secret location in

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

on 16 March 2006. Rao said, "The credit has to be given to the Kazakh authorities. Once we recognized azarovas a refugee, we informed them that he is under the protection of heUNHCR. So Kazakh authorities have honored their ... national obligation and let him stay in the country until the UNHCR organized the third-country settlement. And today, when he wanted to depart, the authorities let him leave the country."

Security fence

Kazakh border officials began building a fence on the border with Uzbekistan on 19 October 2006.Kazakhstan To Fence Section Of Border
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported that the fence will be "eight-foot-high

ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

barbed-wire" and searchlights "along heavily populated towns and cities on the southern ridge" where drug smugglers operate. The area is a "flash point in a larger regional struggle against Islamic militants."Kazakhstan: Fence for Part of Uzbek Border
The New York Times The governments of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan first created national border guard forces in 1992 and January 1998 respectively, far earlier than other post-

nations. The Kazakh government raised the force in status, ending the State Security Committee's control until the Committee regained control in 1998.Border security in Central Asia: Before and after September 11
Geneva Center for the Democratic control of Armed Forces Other Central Asian nations have had border disputes in the past.

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

and

had serious "issues" regarding their mutual border until May 2004. The Turkmen Foreign Ministry released a statement on 31 May saying disputes had been resolved.Dates Related to Elections, Officials, and Policy
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty Erik Roslyakov, second in command of Kazakhstan's southern border, said the fence will cover the Sariaghash and Maktaaral districts. Larisa Dmitriyuk, spokeswoman for Kazakhstan's border administration, said the border patrol's "task will now be easier. We will be in a position to use our weapons, as it is the rule when one wants to catch respassers" In addition to tightening security, Bruce Pannier of ''Payvand'' noted increased military spending to strengthen Kazakhstan's border with Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Criticism

'' Nezavisimaya Gazeta'' interviewed Vyacheslav Kasymov, director of the executive committee of the Regional Anti-terrorist Center of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and published the interview on 7 February. In the interview Kasymov accused the Kazakh government of giving refuge to terrorist organizations, specifically Saudi Binladin Group, which operated in Astana. In November 2004 the Supreme Court ruled against the company's claim to 7 square kilometres of land in Astana. The Kazakh Foreign Ministry issued a statement two days later, on 9 February, calling Kasymov's statements "absolutely incompatible with the status of a head of the structure of a large international organization and casts a shadow of doubt on the reputation and position of the SCO in the contemporary world." The statement said the Kazakh government has signed 12 UN anti-terrorist conventions. The Kazakh Foreign Ministry has since characterized Kasymov's comments as "inappropriate" and "totally deprived of the spirit of the basic documents of

he Shanghai Cooperation Organisation He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

because "There weren't and there are not any terrorists' bases or camps on the soil of Kazakhstan."The Ministry of foreign affairs of Kazakhstan considers the statements of the director of the Antiterroristic structure to the Shanghai Organization of Cooperation as "inappropriate"
Permanent Mission of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the United Nations The

and

have criticized the Nazarbayev administration's policy of transferring terrorist suspects to neighboring countries, specifically

, where HRW says suspects face torture.Kazakhstan: Do Not Deport Uzbek Human Rights Advocate
Human Rights Watch
Scoop Independent News The strongest criticism of the Nazarbayev administration's counter-terrorism operations comes from Harout Semerdjian of the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. Semerdjian accuses the government of engaging in "semi- state terrorism" through unlawful arrests of journalists,

arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wat ...

, and other attacks on the press. The U.S. embassy criticized an act of arson in Kazakhstan in May 2002.

References

External links

Kazakhstani bids for regional antiterrorism agenda(Japan Today)(Interfax)Kazakh, Tajik security chiefs discuss anti-terrorism cooperation18 Are Sent Home From GuantanamoKazakhstan, UK sign antiterror accordKazakh official seeks to tighten Uzbek border securityKazakhstan extradites terror suspect to UzbekistanMP urges NATO to back Kazakhstan in fighting drugs, terrorism
{{DEFAULTSORT:Terrorism And Counter-Terrorism In Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

Human rights abuses in Kazakhstan

Banned terrorist organizations

Ties between designated terrorist organizations

Aum Shinrikyo and East Turkestan Liberation Organization

Al-Qaeda and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan

Hamas

Hizb-ut-Tahrir

Jamaat of Central Asian Mujahedins

2004

2006

2011

Tablighi Jamaat

Russian separatism

Almaty airplane bomb

State terrorism

Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism

Literature

Cooperation with China

Chinese delegation visit

Tian-Shan-1 2006

Cooperation with India

Cooperation with international bodies

CICA Declaration on Eliminating Terrorism

Combating money laundering and terrorism financing workshop

International Conference on Peace and Harmony

United Nations Terrorism Committee conference in Almaty

Cooperation with Russia

Cooperation with Singapore

Cooperation with the United Arab Emirates

Cooperation with the United States

Response to the September 11, 2001 attacks

United States air bases

Cooperation with Uzbekistan

Andijan massacre

Extradition of terrorist suspects

Security fence

Criticism

Further reading

See also

References

External links