The parliament speaker in Russia's Khakassia Republic has apologized for a statement he made about Moscow's right to "own" territories in Kazakhstan.
Vladimir Shtygashev said on April 12 that his words had been misinterpreted and he offered "sincere apologies" to everyone offended by his statement.
Yeah. "Misinterpreted." I hate it when that happens.
When Putin asserts the right to protect ethnic Russians wherever they are, the right to own territories is not something to be interpreted as it is to be prioritized. Kazakhstan is simply lower down the list, it is clear.
Some in Khazakhstan seem to have a similar "misinterpretation" of Moscow's threat:
[Opinion] in Kazakhstan on the Crimea crisis appears to be divided along ethnic lines: Northern Kazakhstan, which is dominated by an ethnic Russian population tends to be supportive of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s strategy in Ukraine, whereas the rest of the republic harbors decidedly mixed feelings on the subject.
There's your problem right there: northerners (ethnic Russians) would welcome their new
We'll see if Kazakhstan and its neighbors play the China card in response.
That Khakassia legislator made the classic government faux pas--he told the truth.
