Kazakh MP proposes travel restrictions for former top officials, names former president

Ermurat Bapi, deputy of the Mazhilis, Kazakhstan’s lower house of parliament, has proposed a law to limit foreign travel for former high-ranking officials with access to state secrets, including Kazakhstan’s first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The initiative was prompted by Nazarbayev’s recent meeting with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. Bapi argued that such trips could pose national security risks, Caliber.Az reports via Kazakh media.

“State secrets held by former presidents, ministers, and other officials remain a national security factor. Therefore, a legal barrier is needed for their travel abroad,” he said, citing international practices, including restrictions in China.

Bapi suggested implementing pre-established “border control” or “red flag” measures for figures like Nazarbayev and Kairat Kozhamzharov.

He warned that the former president’s trip to Moscow could be perceived as pressure on Kazakhstan’s state institutions and society, adding that he sees no political benefit for the country.

“I feel sorry for a person who has not found support in his own country, among his own people. Now he is forced to seek support abroad. This is a tragedy for a former president,” the deputy said.

By Jeyhun Aghazada