US and UK Continue Training of Kazakhstan Military After Afghanistan Rebuff
The annual military exercises between Kazakhstan, the US and UK began this week near Almaty, and this year the roster of participating nations has grown a bit, with Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania and Tajikistan participating as well. From the Kazakhstan government release:
For three weeks, personnel representing six armies will practice interaction, combat compatibility, cooperation and interoperability during international peacekeeping operations....
The exercises will culminate in what is called the “active phase,” during which peacekeepers will conduct a live peacekeeping operation in compliance with all international regulations.
This exercise is aimed at developing Kazakhstan's nascent peacekeeping units, but there will likely be a bit of a cloud over the proceedings this year since Kazakhstan decided to back out of a deployment to Afghanistan. Since that's the sort of thing the US and UK have been training Kazakhstan's military for, presumably there is some grumbling in the Pentagon and Whitehall about what exactly is the point of this any more.
Nevertheless, Kazakhstan continues to have high hopes for the units, KazBat and KazBrig. Mukan Dyuissekeyev, the deputy chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of Kazakhstan's armed forces, says next year KazBat will be ready:
In 2012, when we are scheduled to check the level of compatibility of the NATO member-states, we expect representatives from 40 NATO participating states to arrive in Kazakhstan. Hopefully, the next year is going to be a crucial one when the KazBat is going to be assessed by international experts.
Representatives from 40 countries, eh? Well, they managed to get an OSCE summit in Astana, so don't count them out.
Joshua Kucera, a senior correspondent, is Eurasianet's former Turkey/Caucasus editor and has written for the site since 2007.
Sign up for Eurasianet's free weekly newsletter. Support Eurasianet: Help keep our journalism open to all, and influenced by none.