Russian-led Coalition Troops To Leave Kazakhstan In Two Days, US Monitors Until Finish

Armored vehicles of the Russian-led CSTO coalition forces in Kazakhstan. (Wikimedia Commons/Mil.ru/Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation)

JAKARTA - The United States Department of State welcomes Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's announcement that Russian-led forces have completed their mission in the country following serious unrest.

In his speech, President Tokayev said that troops from the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), would begin withdrawing from the country within two days of stabilizing the Central Asian country.

"Until that process is completed, until the CSTO peacekeeping force is withdrawn, we will continue to call on all collective security treaty organizations, collective peacekeeping forces to respect international human rights and to uphold their commitment to leave Kazakhstan immediately, as the country's government requests," State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters, citing Reuters January 12.

As reported earlier, President Tokayev said the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) mission, whose legitimacy and duration were questioned by Washington, which prompted an angry response from Moscow, totaled 2.030 troops and 250 military hardware.

On Tuesday, he said CSTO's main mission had been successfully completed. The coalition of forces will begin a gradual withdrawal in two days and withdraw altogether in 10.

Separately, Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed victory in defending Kazakhstan from what he describes as a foreign-backed terrorist insurgency.

To note, Kazakh authorities say order has been largely restored in the country of 19 million, with nearly 10.000 people having been detained over the unrest, while another chase is ongoing.