The civil conflict in Kazakhstan and the call for CSTO forces have created a big rift in the Turkic world. Kasim-Jomart Tokayev's appeal to Russia, i.e calling the CSTO to quell the unrest by putting the Organization of the Turkic States (OTS) off its agenda has been met with covert dissatisfaction in all CIS countries, especially Turkey.

Of course, Tokayev could not request the OTS to send troops, because first of all this organisation is not a military organization, and secondly Kazakhstan is a member of the CSTO. However, the OTS had more opportunities than the CSTO to create an atmosphere of dialogue between the government and the protesters in Kazakhstan and to resolve the problem peacefully. A group of intellectuals from OTS member states would be able to negotiate with peaceful protesters in Kazakhstan, bring their problems to the attention of the government and prevent the events from turning into civil war.

But dictators benefit from blood, not dialogue. Tokayev also followed in the footsteps of Bashar al-Assad. He called on the Russian army to quell the uprising in his country. And with this step, he said "yes" to the new USSR, and "no" to the development of the OTS and the Turkish NATO plans.

Many experts claim that Russia is the state behind the events in Kazakhstan. Although we do not see behind the scenes, it is possible to say that Russia is the country that has benefited the most from these riots. However, Moscow's gain is not to send its army to Kazakhstan. Russia, in fact has four major military bases in Kazakhstan. Among the post-Soviet countries, Kazakhstan is the country with the largest number of Russian servicemen. In other words, Russia has never left Kazakhstan to use the unrest as an excuse.

What was Moscow's goal?

Moscow has two major goals in bringing CSTO peacekeepers to Kazakhstan:

1. To make Kazakhstan, like Belarus, completely dependent on itself;

2. To create a big rift within the Organization of Turkic States.

And we can say that now Russia has achieved both goals.

Quick reminder

- March 20, 2020: Uzbekistan and Turkey sign a military cooperation agreement;

- March 22, 2021: Joint military exercises between Turkey and Uzbekistan;

- May 5, 2021: Turkey and Kazakhstan sign a military cooperation agreement;

- June 15, 2021: Turkey and Azerbaijan sign the Shusha Declaration on military alliance;

- October 12, 2021: President of Uzbekistan Shevkat Mirzoyev declares: "We will not join the CSTO."

- November 5, 2021: Kyrgyz President Saparov announces purchase of Bayraktar TB-2 drones from Turkey;

- November 11, 2021: Joint military exercises are held between Kazakhstan and Turkey;

- November 17, 2021: The leader of the Turkish Nationalist Movement Party presents a map of Turan to President Erdogan. The map has been met with sharp protests in Russian political circles;

- November 20, 2021: Military exercises are held between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Thus, it is clear from the above brief remarks that military cooperation between OTS members has developed intensively over the past year, and members of the Russian NATO have begun to lay the foundations of the Turkish NATO. Recent events in Kazakhstan suggest that the Kremlin has created a big rift within the CIS to prevent it from becoming a new military-political alliance.

It is possible to draw the following conclusion from the statement of the NMP (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli about the events in Kazakhstan:

"It is reasonable to say that these riots in Kazakhstan are simply the result of price increases. The forces behind these illegal demonstrations seem to want to create a wave of chaos in Central Asia. Of course, the circles concerned about the OTS do not stand idle, they set traps. On the one hand, they aim to penetrate the region, on the other hand, they try to break the unity of Turkism. If God willing, they will not succeed. The historical background of the steppe where Turks used to live is enough to surprise all surroundings. The flag once raised will never fall."

The first manifestation of the rift in the OTS created by the Tokayev / Putin tandem was the tension between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Kyrgyzstan, which has a more democratic system than other Central Asian countries, first refused to send troops to Kazakhstan at the request of the people, and was then forced to do so by Kremlin pressure. Then Kyrgyzstan issued a note to Kazakhstan. The reason for the note was the arrest of the famous Kyrgyz musician Vikram Ruzakhunov on suspicion of terrorism in Kazakhstan.

Today, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov refused to join the CSTO online summit on the situation in Kazakhstan. He was replaced at the summit by Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov.

It should be noted that the development of mutual trust and cooperation between Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, two members of the CIS and the CSTO, will be very difficult. The reason is the hatred of the Kyrgyz people for the regime in Kazakhstan.

In general, the attitude of the whole Turkic world towards the President of Kazakhstan Tokayev is the same as in Kyrgyzstan. All Turkish intellectuals accuse Tokayev of betraying his country to Russia. In such a situation, the open support of the Tokayev regime by countries such as Turkey, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, where Turkish nationalism is widespread, may cause a public distress. Tokayev, who does not have the support of the OTS, can leave the organisation with a radical decision. In any case, the presence of Kazakhstan in the OTS during the Tokayev period is under question.

Thus, the biggest damage in the events in Kazakhstan inflicted to the OTS. First of all, the geopolitical prestige of the Turkish Union decreased with Tokayev's appeal and the "quickest" response of the CSTO. In addition, the OTS faces the threat of losing another independent member besides Kazakhstan. This country is Uzbekistan. Speaking at today's CSTO summit, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, who recently resembled a Kremlin spokesman, made statements targeting Uzbekistan. He openly threatened Shevkat Mirzoyev, who refused to join the CSTO, saying that "Uzbekistan should be the first to publish the events in Kazakhstan." Lukashenko's threat voiced the Kremlin's message: "If you do not return to the CSTO, you will face the same fate ..."

As a result, if two months ago the agenda of the Turkic world was "Turkish NATO" and "Turan", today the agenda is the threat of losing Kazakhstan's state independence, its integration into the modern "USSR", the isolation of Kazakhstan from the Turkic world and the loss of Uzbekistan.

P.S. Every Turk is proud of the establishment of 17 great Turkic states throughout history, but none of them so far is interested in why 16 states have collapsed ...

by Nijat Ismayilov