The Kazakh authorities will not expel the Ukrainian ambassador to Astana, contrary to Russian demands.

According to data provided by the Reuters news agency, contrary to the demands of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Kazakh authorities refused to expel the Ukrainian ambassador to Astana. It is reported that Russia's arguments were not considered sufficiently necessary in Kazakhstan.

Initially, it was reported that Kazakhstan and Ukraine were agreeing on the appointment of a new ambassador, however, Reuters later published information that the Kazakh authorities rejected the Russian demand to expel the Ukrainian ambassador to Astana because of comments about the murder of Russians, accusing Moscow of inappropriate tone in relations between "equal strategic partners".

Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry drew attention to the fact that the Ukrainian diplomat, who was noted for his calls to kill Russians, returned to the capital of Kazakhstan after his departure and attends diplomatic receptions as the head of a diplomatic mission. Moscow expressed extreme dissatisfaction with the fact that the Ukrainian diplomat retained his status as ambassador to Kazakhstan.

However, so far no official statements have been made by the Kazakh authorities, which raises a number of questions as to whether Astana will support the Russian demands.