Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated on Tuesday the withdrawal of the Collective Security Treaty Organization's (CSTO) peacekeeping troops from his country will begin in two days.
"The main mission of the CSTO peacekeeping forces has been successfully completed," he remarked. "The process of withdrawal of the contingent will take no more than 10 days."
CSTO troops, mainly from Russia, arrived in Kazakhstan earlier this month at Tokayev's invitation to help maintain order during the protests against high energy prices and government corruption. Meanwhile, the president described the demonstrations as an attempted coup d'etat and allowed the nation's security forces to shoot at attendees without warning.
