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Paper short abstract:

The paper touches upon the external dimension of the January 2022 events in Kazakhstan and argues that the January events do not necessarily mean the end of Kazakhstan's multi-vector foreign policy, and the country will be able to continue with the previous approach to foreign affairs.

Paper long abstract:

The January 2022 tragic events in Kazakhstan and the subsequent intervention of the CSTO ‘peacekeeping forces’ with the situation generated massive fears, both domestically and internationally, that the country would completely fall under Russia's influence. Many commentators, especially from Western societies, were quick to argue that the CSTO’s intervention would mean the end of Kazakhstan’s multi-vector foreign policy. In this regard, this paper touches upon the external dimension of the January 2022 events in Kazakhstan. First, the paper descriptively discusses the official reaction of external actors to the January events, including that of Russia, China, the US, the EU, as well as the Central Asian countries. Secondly, it elaborates on whether and how those external reactions impact the multi-vector foreign policy of the country. The paper claims that the January 2022 tragic events didn’t receive harsh criticism from the international audience. Some of the mentioned states openly supported how the Kazakhstani government reacted to the situation (i.e. Russia), while others opted for a more neutral position (i.e. China, Central Asian countries). Even the official American and European reaction to the January 2022 events in Kazakhstan was comparatively modest. Based on this, the paper argues that, despite a popular opinion among some commentators, the January events in Kazakhstan do not necessarily mean that the country will fall under Russia’s influence. Such initial fears were exaggerated to an extent, and Kazakhstan will be able to continue with its multi-vector foreign policy, including close economic-political ties with the West. This becomes even more evident in the light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has shifted the focus of the international community from Kazakhstan to Ukraine.