Date: July 26, 2026
By Kimberly Wilson
OMSK, Russia — Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev publicly called for a freeze in the war between Russia and Ukraine while appearing alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin at a regional forum in the Siberian city of Omsk, saying renewed negotiations offer the best chance for ending the conflict. His remarks represent one of the strongest public appeals for peace made by the leader of one of Russia's closest allies since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.
Speaking during the Russia-Kazakhstan Interregional Cooperation Forum, Tokayev said a peace agreement could become possible if both sides agreed to halt active fighting and return to the negotiating table. He suggested revisiting what he called the "Istanbul Formula 2.0," referring to previous rounds of peace talks held in Istanbul in 2022 and 2025 that ultimately failed to produce a lasting settlement.
Tokayev stressed that the continuing conflict has caused immense human suffering and warned that prolonging the war benefits neither Russia nor Ukraine. He said international efforts should focus on creating conditions for negotiations supported by credible security guarantees involving major global powers.
The Kazakh leader praised Putin's diplomatic flexibility while emphasizing that a political solution remains achievable. However, he stopped short of offering Kazakhstan as a formal mediator, noting that any successful peace initiative would require the commitment of both Moscow and Kyiv, along with support from the broader international community.
President Putin responded cautiously to Tokayev's proposal. According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Putin explained Russia's current military position and reiterated that Moscow remains prepared to end military operations only if Ukraine accepts Russia's longstanding conditions for peace.
Those conditions include Ukraine withdrawing its forces from the four regions that Russia claims to have annexed, abandoning its ambition to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and accepting other security arrangements sought by Moscow. Ukraine has consistently rejected those demands, arguing they would require surrendering internationally recognized Ukrainian territory and undermine its sovereignty.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, Kazakhstan has maintained a careful diplomatic balance. While preserving close economic and security ties with Moscow, Astana has repeatedly affirmed Ukraine's territorial integrity and declined to recognize the Russian-backed entities in eastern Ukraine or Russia's annexation claims.
The war has also had significant economic consequences for Kazakhstan. The country relies heavily on export routes that pass through Russian territory, and repeated disruptions linked to the conflict have affected Kazakhstan's energy exports and broader economy. Analysts say these economic pressures partly explain Tokayev's increasing calls for a negotiated settlement.
Ukraine welcomed Tokayev's remarks. Ukrainian Acting Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha described the Kazakh president's appeal as a "realistic, timely, and wise" message, saying Kyiv appreciates calls to end the war through diplomacy.
Despite growing international appeals for negotiations, fighting continues across multiple fronts in eastern and southern Ukraine. Russian and Ukrainian forces remain engaged in intense combat, while both countries continue carrying out long-range missile and drone strikes against military and infrastructure targets.
Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have repeatedly stalled over fundamental disagreements regarding territory, security guarantees, and Ukraine's future relationship with NATO. While Russia insists that its conditions are necessary for lasting peace, Ukraine maintains that any settlement must respect its sovereignty and internationally recognized borders.
Tokayev's public appeal, delivered while standing beside President Putin, is likely to attract international attention because it reflects growing concern—even among some of Russia's closest partners—about the prolonged human and economic costs of the war. Although there was no indication that Moscow would alter its position following the remarks, the intervention highlighted continuing international efforts to revive negotiations and seek a diplomatic path toward ending Europe's largest armed conflict since World War II.