Peacekeepers as a part of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy

In addition to the classical diplomacy, there are always additional forms within which foreign policy is implemented. Among them, the non-military-type operations stand out, and already among those, peacekeeping operations play a key role. Of course, Kazakhstan has very little experience with it so far, but I think it will be interesting to provide an informational overview of everything that is connected with them.

Peacekeepers in Tajikistan

During the civil war in Tajikistan, according to the decision of the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries, peacekeeping forces from Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan were sent to Tajikistan.

At the initial stage, on September 10, 1992, one airborne assault battalion without equipment was sent to Tajikistan, the total of 300 soldiers from the 35th separate airborne assault brigade, stationed in the city of Kapchagai.

Later, in the spring of 1993, a consolidated battalion of three rifle companies was formed without full-time armored vehicles from three power departments — the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the KNB border troops. The service in the combined battalion was carried out on the basis of a regular line-up change of the military personnel – a turnover shift of three months.

The combat mission of the Kazakhstani military during the civil war in Tajikistan was to strengthen roadblocks and outposts of the Russian border in Kalai-Khumb. In the area of the deployment of the consolidated battalion, the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan suffered the most severe loss in a lone battle. On April 7, 1995, in the Pshihavr Gorge of the Pamirs, a company of internal troops was ambushed during a march, and had an unequal battle with the opponent. During the battle, 17 people died, 33 were injured. Over the entire period of the peacekeeping missions in Tajikistan, during the hostilities the combined Kazakhstani battalion lost 54 fighters, either killed or missing. The mission technically ended in 2000, but in fact the peacekeepers left there only in 2001.

Peacekeepers in Iraq

After the peacekeeping operation in Tajikistan in 2000, Kazbat was established. As it was written at the disposal of the president:

«Create a Kazakhstani peacekeeping battalion in the form of a state institution (hereinafter — Kazbat) on the basis of the third air assault battalion of the air assault brigade, as a part of the Armed forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan.»

At that time, it was the only specialized peacekeeping unit in the region and is still the only one that remains.

After the Tajikistan peacekeeping operation, the next mission for the Kazakstani military was the peacekeeping operation under the auspices of the United States and NATO in Iraq (Operation ‘Freedom for Iraq’).

Kazbat participated in the peacekeeping operation in Iraq for five years, from 2003 to 2008. From 2003 to 2007, the unit was part of the «Center-South» Multinational Division under Polish leadership. Since the fall of 2007, the ISO, the only foreign contingent, has become directly subordinate to the American command of the Multinational Division «Center».

In total, more than 270 troops took part. The Kazakhstanis were represented by bomb squads and cleared numerous minefields and unexploded ammunition, while also conducting engineering operations. All had 10 personnel rotations of 6 months each. In Iraq, Kazakhstanis destroyed more than 4.5 million different munitions — mines, missiles and shells. During the operation, died Captain Kairat Kudabaev.

Peacekeeping Training

In addition to combined arms training, future peacekeepers are undergoing specialized training in Kazakhstan — currently, the Partnership for Peace training center of the Military Institute of the Ground Forces (KAZCENT) operates in Kazakhstan:

• KAZCENT was established in 2008 on the basis of the Military Institute of Foreign Languages of the Ministry of Defense of Kazakhstan.
• Recognized as the 19th member of the Community of Partnership Learning and Training Centers in December 2010. The decision on recognition was made by the NATO Political Committee based on a series of visits by the NATO expert group and their assessments.
• Joined the International Association of Peacekeeping Training Centers in September 2010.

KAZCENT is the only Partnership for Peace training center officially recognized by NATO on the territory of Central Asia.

The center has two areas of training courses — specialized and linguistic courses.

Specialized training includes the following courses:

• Military terminology of the English language in multinational operations;
• Regional security of Central Asia and Afghanistan through cultural awareness;
• Introduction to UN peacekeeping;
• UN staff officers;
• Legal aspects of peacekeeping operations;
• UN course «Protection of civilians»;
• UN police officer.

Linguistic courses include a general intensive English course and an intensive English course under the program of international military education and training.

In addition, the notion of the peacekeeping was separately legislatively worked out after the adoption of the law «On Peacekeeping». The «Handbook for Preparing for a Peacekeeping Operation» describes planning, training for the national contingent, the creation of an operational headquarters, and other issues. A model contract on participation in the peacekeeping operation is separately attached.

The law «On Peacekeeping»

The law was adopted in June 15, 2015. Only once in 5 years was it amended, on July 11, 2017.

It regulates public relations associated with the participation of the national contingent of the Republic of Kazakhstan in peacekeeping and security operations (missions), in accordance with international obligations adopted by the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The goals of peacekeeping are to assist the international community and foreign states in preventing, deterring and ending armed conflicts between countries or within a state, as well as providing humanitarian assistance in accordance with international obligations undertaken by the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The decisions for considering the participation of the national contingent in the peacekeeping operation are made by an international organization and (or) an international treaty ratified by the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The participation in peacekeeping operations is voluntary.

The following factors are incentives for the peacekeepers:

• Three figure wage;
• Upon return, military personnel are sent for sanatorium-resort treatment at the expense of the state, for a period of not less than seven calendar days, but not more than twenty-one days;
• The period of stay in the area of a peacekeeping operation is equated to participation in hostilities;
• Military personnel participating in peacekeeping operations are granted an additional two-week leave, which is added to the annual leave. Also, the period of participation in peacekeeping operations for a soldier shall be counted on concessional terms one month for one and a half months;
• For servicemen awarded with an order(-s) for participating in peacekeeping operations, the size of severance pay increases by two salaries.
• It should be noted that in addition to the payment from Kazakhstan, peacekeepers also receive payments from the UN according to their standards, during the operation and during the spa treatment.

For example, this is how payments during the peacekeeping operation in Iraq (that came from the International Coalition) are described:

««And how did you decide the money issue? How much did they give you on a trip to Iraq, and in terms of finance, how did your families live in your absence?»

«Before leaving, each of us was given $ 1,800; we took it for incidental expenses. In the Delta camp, the Americans credited us a daily allowance of $60, despite the fact that they have completely provided us with food and accommodations. In addition to that, the Ministry of Defense paid us triple figure wages. As a result, it turned out that each of us earned an average of 15 thousand dollars on an Iraqi business trip. Our officers got paid even more. In any case, the families of the Kazbat residents were not abandoned. Even if at first it was not easy for our wives, since in our absence they lived mainly on personal savings, later everything was fine,» Gabit explained.»

• Separately, on May 5, 2016, a law was added: «Rules of one-time compensation in case of loss (death) of a civil servant, a one-time compensation in case of injury and (or) disability during the period of a peacekeeping operation».

Kazakhstan’s contemporary peacekeeping operations

At present, Kazakhstan’s peacekeeping operations are divided in 2 directions — observer officers and peacekeeping units.

As noted on the website of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the parliament adopted the presidential proposals in two documents:

Decree of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated December 20, 2013 No. 15 — V PRK «On the proposal of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev on sending officers of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan as observers to participate in UN missions.»

Decisions of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated June 15, 2018 No. 25-VI of the PRK «On the proposals of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev on sending military personnel of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan to participate in United Nations missions.»

Kazakhstan Observer Officers are now located in Western Sahara and Côte d'Ivoire.

A Kazakhstani company of peacekeepers, as part of the Indo-Kazakhstan battalion, at the moment is on a mission in Lebanon. Now there have already gone 4 units of 120 troops.

In 2018, a memorandum was signed on the joint deployment of Kazakh and Indian peacekeepers in Lebanon. It defined the following conditions:

• Rotation of 6 months;
• Peacekeepers are at the UN Base 4–2;
• Kazakhstan company consists of 120 people, including 2 officers at the headquarters of the battalion. The battalion itself consists of 850 people;
• The UN supports the contingent in all relevant categories, with the exception of laundry and cleaning services, general and night surveillance devices, basic medical and first-level care, and dental care;
• The Indian side provides the Kazakhstani peacekeeping contingent with basic medical and first-level care, as well as dental care;
• The Kazakhstan peacekeeping contingent independently provides itself with laundry and cleaning services, as well as general and nightly monitoring facilities for its personnel in accordance with UN requirements / instructions;
• Payment goes from the UN through the Permanent Mission of the Republic of India to the UN.

The functions of Kazakhstanis are as the following: they patrol the area, organize observation posts, provide assistance to the civilian population, and also participate in all activities conducted by the mission headquarters.

It should be noted that such joint missions are very beneficial for Kazakhstan — the main funding comes from the UN, Indian partners have vast experience in peacekeeping operations, and Kazakhstani military personnel receive very extensive experience in non-military operations.

Law «On Veterans»

Peacekeepers serving in Tajikistan became the main initiators of the adoption of the law «On Veterans», which was adopted on May 6, 2020.

This law defines the organizational, economic and legal basis for the provision of social support measures to veterans and other persons covered by this law.

Veterans in accordance with the law are defined as following :

• Veterans of the Great Patriotic War;
• War veterans on the territory of other states;
• Veterans equated in benefits to veterans of World War II;
• Labor veterans;
• Families of dead military personnel;
• Liquidators of the Chernobyl accident;
• Workers and employees sent to Afghanistan from December 1, 1979 to December 1989 and other countries, where hostilities were fought.

Separately, it should be mentioned who is considered a veteran of hostilities in the territory of other states:

• Military personnel of the Soviet Army, Navy, State Security Committee, persons in command and rank of the Ministry of the Interior of the former USSR (including military specialists and advisers) who, in accordance with decisions of government bodies of the former USSR, took part in hostilities in the territory other states;
• Persons liable for military service, called up for training camps and sent to Afghanistan during the period of military operations;
• Servicemen of automobile battalions traveling to Afghanistan to deliver goods to this country during the period of hostilities;
• Military personnel who flew to combat missions in Afghanistan, from the territory of the former USSR;
• Workers and employees who have worked for the Soviet military in Afghanistan, injured, shell-shocked or mutilated, or have been awarded orders and medals of the former USSR for participating in hostilities;
• Military personnel of the Republic of Kazakhstan, performing tasks in accordance with interstate treaties and agreements to strengthen border protection of the Commonwealth of Independent States in the Tajik-Afghan sector;
• Military personnel of the Republic of Kazakhstan who participated as peacekeepers in the international peacekeeping operation in Iraq;
• Military personnel, as well as persons in command, who have worked for the Department of Internal Affairs and State Security of the former USSR, and had participated in the settlement of the ethnic conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

A key article of the law is Article 11 «Measures of social support for war veterans on the territory of other states, as well as veterans equated in benefits to veterans of the Great Patriotic War.»

These benefits include:

• Payment of special state benefits in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;

• Social assistance in cash or in kind, provided by the local executive body within its competence;
• Provision of housing by local executive bodies in accordance with the housing legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
• One-time priority for land for individual housing construction;
• Preferential services in organizations providing outpatient care, and emergency hospitalization;
• Receiving qualified medical care in the manner determined by the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
• The right to use the same hospitals to which veterans were registered for during their work;
• Priority for the guaranteed special social services;
• Pre-emptive right in case of equality of points when holding a competition for educational grants, as well as for enrollment in the composition of students on a state educational order for the training of personnel with higher education;
• Upon admission to educational organizations that implement educational programs of technical and vocational, post-secondary and higher education, an admission quota in an amount determined by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan is envisaged;
• The right to extraordinary use of all communication services;
• Preferential taxation in accordance with the tax legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The importance of peacekeeping for the foreign policy of Kazakhstan

It is necessary to separate the military aspect and the foreign policy aspects of peacekeeping for Kazakhstan.

In the Military Doctrine of Kazakhstan, the main activities of the peacekeeping in the future are:

• Increasing the potential and capabilities of the state’s peacekeeping units, bringing them in line with the standards of international and regional organizations to ensure technical and operational compatibility;

• Enhancing the participation of peacekeeping units in joint exercises and the exchange of experience in planning, conducting and comprehensively supporting peacekeeping operations as part of activities conducted by international organizations;

• Participation in joint exercises with the CSTO, SCO, NATO member states to exchange experience in the planning, conduct and comprehensive support of anti-terrorist operations and peacekeeping operations;

• Participation in the work of the Intergovernmental Working Group within the United Nations for the development of international regulatory legal acts on the regulation, monitoring and control of the activities of private military and security companies;

• Development of a regional peacekeeping center on the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan;

• Training of staff officers and their deployment as military observers in UN missions;

• Sending peacekeeping units to carry out tasks in UN missions based on a UN Security Council resolution.

That is, the military is going to not only continue, but also to expand peacekeeping operations. And this is right, because for the military there are the following benefits:

• Gaining experience in non-military operations that are applicable in all local conflicts, anti-terrorist activities and ensuring a state of emergency. For example, the experience of filtering traffic at checkpoints during coronavirus infection has turned out to be very important now;
• Logistics skills — the movement of military cargo and contingents over long distances and their constant supply;
• Interaction with foreign military men and the exchange of experience with them, monitoring their tactics, equipment, weapons, etc.;
• Stay in an unfriendly environment, which trains psychological stability and military discipline;
• In the case of hostilities — direct combat experience, which is unique and cannot be acquired during exercises.
• Verification of existing equipment and weapons in conditions close to combat;
• A separate subjective factor is the motivation of military personnel, to whom participation gives not only the opportunity to work, but also to bring certain social benefits and career advancement. In my opinion, it is the officers with such experience that need to be placed in senior positions — this is to a certain extent the replacement of combat experience, which cannot be underestimated.

For the future development of the army, it is already necessary to participate in peacekeeping operations at the level of the reinforced battalion or brigade, with armored vehicles and engineering equipment, with independent leadership of the operation in a busy area.

And, of course, there are great political benefits:

• Specific political obligations on the part of the country, peacekeepers are located in the territory;
• Political commitments from the international organization that organizes the operation. It should be noted that many countries do not risk sending their troops because they consider the risks unacceptable, so this is valuable;
• The participation of a large number of countries legitimizes any peacekeeping operation or peace enforcement operation. In addition, it symbolizes the political support of the immediate initiator of the operation;
• Participation in the peacekeeping operation allows you to get acquainted with the operation area, local residents and find reliable people there;
• A separate interesting work of diplomats in supporting peacekeepers, which provides a unique experience.

In fact, peacekeeping brings Kazakhstan great benefits that cannot be discarded, and therefore it is necessary to expand the scope of operations.

Marat Shibutov, political scientist

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