Tokayev Urges Putin to 'Freeze' the Ukraine War — and Putin Signs New Military Orders Two Days Later

In an extraordinary moment of public candor between supposed allies, Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stood alongside Vladimir Putin in the Siberian city of Omsk on July 25, 2026, and directly urged the Russian leader to "freeze" the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin rejected the proposal within hours. Ukraine praised it. And just two days later, Putin signed orders to deepen military ties with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan — the very countries whose leaders had heard his appeal.

Tokayev's Unprecedented Public Appeal

Speaking at the 22nd Russia-Kazakhstan Forum of Interregional Cooperation, Tokayev delivered what multiple outlets described as one of his strongest public interventions on the war . Key elements of his plea:

• The core ask: "If I may offer my humble opinion... perhaps it is time to freeze this conflict and return to the negotiating table," Tokayev said, according to reports .
• Emotional framing: He called it "a shame" that young people are dying and said "all this has to be stopped" .
• The proposed framework: Tokayev specifically called for reviving the "Istanbul formula 2.0" — a revised version of the 2022 Istanbul peace talks that both Russia and Ukraine participated in soon after the full-scale invasion began .
• Security guarantees: He proposed that "with (security) guarantees from the great powers, including Russia, we could move forward toward a long-awaited peace" .
• A rare admission of confusion: Tokayev stated that he still does not understand why Russia launched its aggression against Ukraine, adding that "the nature of this conflict is not entirely clear to many, including us" .

Putin did not publicly respond to Tokayev's remarks during the open portion of the event .

The Kremlin's Swift Rejection

The Kremlin dismissed Tokayev's proposal almost immediately on the same day .

• Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Interfax that freezing the conflict "as such is not possible" given Kyiv's current position .
• Peskov claimed that Putin had given Tokayev a "detailed explanation" of why a freeze was impossible, saying the Russian leader had explained the situation "in detail" .
• The Kremlin's stated position was that Russia must first achieve its objectives on the battlefield before any freeze could be considered .

Ukraine's Response: A 'Realistic, Timely, and Wise Message'

Ukraine's reaction stood in stark contrast to the Kremlin's.

• Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha welcomed Tokayev's call, calling it "a realistic, timely, and wise message" .
• Sybiha noted that Ukraine has already proposed stopping the war along the current frontlines and moving to diplomacy, but the Kremlin continues to reject that path .
• He added: "The bottom line: Moscow must feel more pressure before it accepts realistic peace proposals" .

Putin's Military Cooperation Orders — Two Days Later

On July 27, 2026 — two days after Tokayev's public appeal — Putin signed two executive orders authorizing the Russian government to open negotiations with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan to amend existing military-technical cooperation treaties .

The orders target specific agreements:

• With Kazakhstan: The agreement signed on December 24, 2013, which regulates the sale of Russian weapons to Kazakhstan, reciprocal supplies of military-grade products, technology transfer, and protection of classified data .
• With Uzbekistan: The treaty signed on November 29, 2016, covering similar military-technical cooperation .

Multiple Russian and Central Asian media outlets reported the orders, which were published on Russia's official portal for legal information .

Context: Western Sanctions and Military Supply Chains

Several Russian-language sources reported that the initiative to revise the military cooperation agreements emerged "against the background of Western sanctions against Russia" . The European Union has banned the export to Russia of weapons, military products, and a wide range of dual-use goods (electronic components, engines, drone parts). The U.S., EU, UK, and Japan compiled a list of 50 categories of goods that, in their assessment, Russia seeks to procure for military purposes (microchips, optical equipment, aviation parts) .

The existing agreements regulate not only Russia's arms sales to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan but also reciprocal deliveries of military equipment — meaning these Central Asian partners could potentially supply Russia with products it can no longer obtain from Western sources .

What This Means

The sequence of events — a public plea for peace from a close ally, an immediate Kremlin rejection, and a swift move to formalize deeper military cooperation — highlights the complex position of Central Asian states like Kazakhstan. Tokayev has walked a careful line, maintaining what he called the "allied relationship" with Russia while publicly calling for an end to the war . Putin's response, in turn, signals that Moscow views strengthening military supply chains with its Central Asian partners as a higher priority than entertaining a freeze proposal — and that Western sanctions may be driving that urgency.

As the Institute for the Study of War noted, Putin appeared to use Kazakhstan's freeze proposal to justify the continued need for battlefield gains, rather than as a basis for negotiations .