Kazakh president urges Putin to freeze Ukraine war, return to 'Istanbul Formula 2.0'

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Saturday urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to freeze the Ukraine conflict and return to the Istanbul Formula 2.0 framework, stating that significant results were achieved during previous peace talks in Türkiye.

Call for peace formula

Speaking during talks in the Russian city of Omsk, Tokayev said Kazakhstan was not an outsider to the ongoing conflict but would not seek to play a mediator role, expressing confidence that Russia would resolve issues on its own. He said he had received numerous signals from Europe and the United States regarding the conflict, which he described as an interstate war. Tokayev praised what he called Putin's "maximum diplomatic flexibility" during the summit in Anchorage, Alaska, between the Russian president and US President Donald Trump in August last year.

Tokayev emphasized the need for a diplomatic solution, stating: "Perhaps this conflict should be frozen, and we should return to the 'Istanbul Formula 2.0,' since significant results were achieved there." He added: "Then, naturally, under guarantees from the major powers, including Russia, we can move toward the long-awaited peace." The Kazakh leader further warned: "And all of this must be stopped, because what is happening, in my convinced opinion, is to the advantage and delight of the opponents of both Russia and the Ukrainian state."

Tokayev did not clarify his remarks concerning the "Istanbul formula," but Türkiye's largest city has hosted peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, first in the initial weeks of the ongoing war, which produced a framework for a possible deal. In mid-2025, three rounds of renewed peace talks were also held in Istanbul — on May 16, June 2, and July 23 — which produced major prisoner swaps and draft memorandums outlining positions of both sides for a potential peace deal, according to Anadolu.

Strategic economic partnership

Tokayev further commented on Kazakh-Russian ties, saying Russia is effectively becoming the leading investor in his country's economy, with volumes reaching nearly $30 billion. Through joint efforts, the two sides have identified a pool of 177 promising industrial projects, 122 of which have already been implemented, with a total project value of $53 billion, Tokayev said. Defining this to be a significant number given the challenging geopolitical conditions of the current era, he went on to speak about Kazakhstan's project of building its first nuclear power plant.

Putin praised the development of Russian-Kazakh ties, describing them as "truly strategic in nature—not just in words, but in deeds." "This is evidenced by the growing level of trade turnover. Last year, we had almost $28 billion, $27.8 billion, to be precise—a decent figure," he said. Describing this as a positive trend indicating good prospects, Putin said these prospects are determined, among other things, by investment. "Here, too, we have something to brag about: we have 70 projects involving Russian companies and Russian businesses, totaling approximately $30 billion," Putin said, noting Russia is the largest investor in the Kazakh economy in this sense, and in a wide range of sectors.

Nuclear energy cooperation

Tokayev stated he has been informed that field work on the site near Lake Balkhash is nearing completion. "This project isn't just about producing a new form of energy in Kazakhstan. It's a project that will bring our countries and, most importantly, our peoples, particularly the younger generation, closer together," Tokayev said. "After all, we're talking about training technical personnel with Russia's help, local Kazakh personnel who would then be capable of working in this very complex field, the nuclear industry. Therefore, I believe all other issues are progressing quite well," he added.

Putin later told his Kazakh counterpart that he would inform him about the Ukraine situation in detail during their conversation, as the two leaders affirmed their active cooperation within regional organizations including the Collective Security Treaty Organization and the Eurasian Economic Union.