Supporting Kazakhstan To Ensure Stability, Foreign Minister Wang Yi: China And Russia Must Be Against External Power

JAKARTA - China supports the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) coalition troops, which are deployed to Kazakhstan to help quell unrest, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov late Monday.

In a phone call held between the two sides and summarized by Chinese state media, Minister Wang said China supports Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's assessment that the source of the unrest is terrorist activity.

"China and Russia must oppose external forces that interfere with the internal affairs of Central Asian countries, prevent the 'color revolution' and the 'three evil powers' from causing chaos," according to Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

China defines the 'three evil forces' as religious extremism, territorial secession, and violent terrorism, having described them as the culprits behind instability in Xinjiang Province.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday told President Tokayev that China firmly opposes any force that destabilizes Kazakhstan, Chinese state television said.

Apart from calling Foreign Minister Lavrov from Russia, Minister Wang Yi also contacted Kazakh Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tleuberdi, conveying messages and support as Kazakhstan faces anti-government protests and violence.

In a phone call, Minister Wang said that China, as its permanent comprehensive strategic partner, stands ready to support Kazakhstan's efforts to prevent violence and ensure stability at a critical time where its fate and future are at stake, a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said.

On the occasion, Minister Wang also expressed his condolences to the security forces who lost their lives while fighting terrorism and acts of violence. He also expressed his sympathy for the innocent people who were injured in the incident.

Meanwhile, Minister Tleuberdi said Kazakhstan had faced a planned terrorist act, with thousands of police, military law enforcement, and medical personnel being attacked at the same time in many places.

About 164 people have lost their lives across the country, the Kazakh news channel Habar-24 said, citing the Kazakh Ministry of Health, after protests against a sharp rise in gas prices turned into massive riots across Kazakhstan over the past week.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev declared a state of emergency in Almaty and the oil-rich Mangystau region, where protests spread across the country. Government buildings in Kazakhstan were seized or burned. Troops were ordered to shoot to kill to quell rebellions across the country.

Authorities have blamed the violence on "extremists" including Islamist militants trained abroad. In addition, the authorities also asked the Russian-led military bloc to send troops, which the government said had been deployed to guard strategic sites.