Kazakh President Tokayev Urges Putin to Freeze Ukraine War, Calls Deaths of Young Soldiers a Disgrace

During a Russian-Kazakh summit in Omsk, Siberia, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev made a surprising appeal to Vladimir Putin to freeze the conflict in Ukraine, stating that it is 'a shame that young people are dying' and that the fighting must stop. Tokayev, whose country is a Russian ally but has not supported Moscow's offensive, proposed a freeze under guarantees of great powers including Russia, but declined to act as a mediator. Putin listened with his head lowered. The article also reports ongoing casualties: at least 11 killed in Ukrainian drone attacks in Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia, including four children, and three killed in a Russian drone attack in Sumy, Ukraine. The war has been ongoing for over four years.