Talks between the Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia and Kazakhstan and Kassym-Jomart Tokayev have begun in the Kremlin.
During their meeting, the leaders shook hands, embraced, and took seats in armchairs by the fireplace. This was the format of Putin's meeting with Argentine President Alberto Fernandez last week (February 3). He also met with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban (February 1) and French President Emmanuel Macron (February 7) in the same office, but from a considerable distance at the oval table.
For Putin and Tokayev, this was their first face-to-face meeting since the January events in Kazakhstan, when protests turned into riots and pogroms in several Kazakh cities and when CSTO peacekeeping forces were temporarily deployed at the request of the Kazakh president. At that time, the heads of state communicated several times by telephone and participated via video link in the summit of the organization. According to the authorities of the republic, this experience demonstrated the vitality and effectiveness of the CSTO and its ability to act quickly.
Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov predicted that Putin and Tokayev would discuss bilateral relations between Russia and Kazakhstan, economic cooperation and integration processes in the Eurasian economic space. The Kremlin spokesman also said that the leaders would exchange views on the situation in nearby regions and on regional conflicts. Peskov said that the presidents would make press statements following the talks.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS