PRESS RELEASE : Kazakhstan 2022 Presidential elections – UK statement to the OSCE [November 2022]
The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 25 November 2022.
Ambassador Bush welcomes Kazakhstan’s engagement with ODIHR, whose report will support reform in Kazakhstan.
The UK has celebrated 30 years of close partnership with Kazakhstan this year. At a time of critical global challenges, we look forward to further building on this partnership, tackling these challenges together, and improving the opportunities of our people.
The UK notes the preliminary findings of ODIHR’s election monitoring mission, and we welcome Kazakhstan’s engagement with the process. We believe that the observations and recommendations from ODIHR’s preliminary and final reports will further support Kazakhstan as its government and people undertake this next important stage of reform, 30 years after achieving sovereignty and independence.
Reforms adopted in the Constitutional Referendum and in other laws this year are designed to promote a new culture of open political discussion and political competition. As OSCE participating states, both the UK and Kazakhstan have signed up to the principle that lasting security cannot be achieved without respect for human rights and democratic institutions.
We look forward to working together with President Tokayev and his government to promote Kazakhstan’s future prosperity, security and democratic path, as he looks to implement the important political and economic reforms he has outlined.
