Caspian Sea - The Times Of Central Asia

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Ministry of Defense

Kazakhstan Names Former Finance Official Deputy Defense Minister Amid Military Shake-Up

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev appointed Tatyana Savelyeva deputy defense minister on October 7. The former vice minister of finance and member of parliament joins a ministry undergoing a major investigation following the deaths of 14 service members during exercises in the Caspian Sea. The investigation has led to criminal cases and arrests, while senior military commanders have been dismissed. Savelyeva replaced Asker Beisenov, who was dismissed from his position on the same day. To take up the appointment, she resigned early from the Kurultai, Kazakhstan's new unicameral parliament. Savelyeva joined it in late August 2026. The 50-year-old Savelyeva has spent most of her career working in public finance. From 2016 to 2023, she served as vice minister of finance, then became a member of the Mazhilis, the lower house of the former parliament, and secretary of the Committee on Finance and Budget. She became the committee’s chair in February 2024. In August 2026, she was elected to the Kurultai representing the Adilet party. The Defense Ministry has not yet announced which areas Savelyeva will oversee. Her predecessor, Beisenov, previously headed the ministry's Department of Economics and Finance. Political analyst Daniyar Ashimbayev links Savelyeva's appointment to the investigation into the Defense Ministry following the deaths of the service members in the Caspian Sea. He recalled corruption investigations within the ministry, including irregularities in military procurement and supplies. In Ashimbayev's assessment, Savelyeva's experience in the Finance Ministry and parliament could prove useful in bringing order to the military budget. On September 24, during the Khazar Qorgany 2026 naval exercises in the Mangystau region, on Kazakhstan's Caspian coast, 17 service members were swept out to sea. Three were rescued, and 14 died. The tragedy sparked public outrage and questions about how the exercises were organized, personnel training, and the actions of the military command. On September 27, Tokayev dismissed Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov. Aidos Myrzakhmetov became the new head of the ministry. The chief of the General Staff, the commander-in-chief of the Naval Forces, and other senior military officers subsequently lost their positions. On October 5, the president was presented with the initial findings of the Defense Ministry investigation. A commission headed by Deputy Chair of the Security Council Aida Balayeva identified violations in the organization of exercises, service member safety, discipline, and logistical support. Thirteen criminal cases have been opened over the suspected theft of state property, abuse of office, and other violations. The deaths of the service members are being investigated separately. At the October 5 briefing, officials said five military officials had been arrested in connection with the deaths. On October 6, the Interior Ministry announced the detention of former navy commander Kanat Niyazbekov on suspicion of negligence, with a court authorizing his arrest. Investigators also uncovered cases of hazing and violence against service members. Tokayev instructed officials to prepare a military reform plan, including changes to management, personnel training, discipline, and safety measures. On September 27, he gave the Security Council Office and Defense Ministry ten days to submit the...

Military Deaths

Kazakhstan Defense Ministry Inspection Leads to 13 Criminal Cases in Wake of Soldiers’ Deaths

A comprehensive inspection of Kazakhstan’s Defense Ministry has resulted in 13 criminal cases involving suspected theft of state property, abuse of office, and other violations. The inspection follows the deaths of 14 servicemen during military exercises in the Caspian Sea on September 24. On October 5, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev heard the inspection's initial findings. The commission found serious shortcomings in the preparation and planning of the exercises, risk assessment, organization of the landing operation, and measures to ensure the servicemen’s safety. Criminal cases also concern hazing and violence against servicemen. The tragedy was followed by a reshuffle at the top of the defense establishment. On September 27, Aidos Myrzakhmetov became defense minister, replacing Dauren Kosanov, who was dismissed the same day. Myrzakhmetov had spent much of his career in the State Guard Service, the agency responsible for protecting the president and other designated officials. On October 3, Tokayev dismissed First Deputy Defense Minister and Chief of the General Staff Kanysh Abubakirov, Deputy Defense Minister Almaz Dzhumakeyev, and Navy Commander-in-Chief Kanat Niyazbekov. On October 5, another former senior State Guard Service officer, Aitkurman Omarbekov, was appointed First Deputy Defense Minister and Chief of the General Staff. Former navy commander Kanat Niyazbekov was detained on October 6 on suspicion of negligence in connection with the deaths, with a court authorizing his arrest, according to the Interior Ministry. But the president did not stop at personnel changes. Following the deaths of the marines, he ordered the preparation of a Military Reform Plan and delivered one of his harshest public assessments of the armed forces in years. “Our army is stuck in the last century… the command system must be completely rebuilt in line with advanced international practice,” Tokayev said on September 27. He described the deaths of servicemen in peacetime as the result of what he called “essentially criminal unprofessionalism by officers, including generals.” Public Anger After the Caspian Tragedy Political analyst Daniyar Ashimbayev wrote that the deaths of the servicemen in the Mangystau region triggered “a very strong and emotional reaction in the country,” amplified by what he called the “traditionally clumsy actions” of the military bureaucracy. “Rumors, gossip, fakes, and openly provocative content quickly began to emerge. Nor should we forget that the emergency occurred in the most difficult region,” he wrote, referring to the history of protests in oil-producing Mangystau. The public reaction was particularly intense because of the circumstances surrounding the soldiers’ deaths. The Khazar Qorgany 2026 exercises were taking place in Kazakhstan’s sector of the Caspian Sea. During a training mission, 17 servicemen were swept out to sea; three were rescued. For some of those who died, these were the final days of their compulsory military service. Deputy Navy Commander Arman Satkanov said some had as little as eight days left before returning home, with their tickets already purchased. Five members of the military command were detained on September 25 on suspicion of negligence and violations of navigation rules. They included the Navy chief of staff and first...

Caspian Sea

Japan Funds $3 Million Caspian Sea Monitoring Project in Kazakhstan

Japan is funding a $3 million project to improve monitoring of the shrinking Caspian Sea, focusing particularly on Kazakhstan’s shallow northern basin. The project, implemented by the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with Kazakhstan, was officially launched in Aktau on October 5. Experts from across the Caspian region are expected to take part in joint research and a regional scientific platform designed to improve the exchange of data and expertise. For Kazakhstan, the most immediate problem lies in the northern Caspian. The water there is extremely shallow, meaning that even relatively small declines in sea level can push the shoreline back considerable distances. Habitats used by Caspian seals and sturgeon are already changing, while ports and shipping face growing difficulties. Scientists link the decline to changes in the Caspian Sea’s water balance. The sea has no connection to the world’s oceans and depends on river inflow, precipitation, and evaporation. The Volga supplies most of its river water, while rising temperatures are increasing evaporation. In July 2025, the Caspian was reported to have fallen to its lowest level in the instrumental record. The Times of Central Asia reported that the shallow northeastern section along Kazakhstan and Russia was retreating particularly rapidly. The consequences could become far greater than the shoreline retreat already visible today. A study published in Communications Earth & Environment found that a five-meter decline from the study’s reference level could turn about 77,000 square kilometers of the Caspian’s current water surface into land, equivalent to around one-fifth of its present area. The northern basin would be among the areas most severely affected. The new project is intended to provide a clearer picture of how the decline is unfolding. Specialists will assess Kazakhstan’s existing observation network along the northern Caspian and identify where additional monitoring sites and modern equipment are needed. Sea level and river-flow measurements will be combined with data on temperature, salinity, evaporation, weather conditions, seabed depth, and satellite observations to improve projections of future changes. Kazakhstan is also tracking the volume of water reaching the Caspian. According to data from the Zhaiyk-Caspian basin inspectorate cited by the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, 6.16 billion cubic meters had reached the sea since the start of 2026. Over the previous two and a half years, the total exceeded 35 billion cubic meters, including more than 17 billion during the exceptional floods of 2024.

Avaza Summit

Central Asia and Azerbaijan Head to Avaza for First Formal Summit

On Thursday, Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov is due to receive Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Sadyr Japarov, Emomali Rahmon, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and Ilham Aliyev in a place built to impress visitors. Thursday’s meeting will be the first formal consultative summit since Azerbaijan joined the format as a full participant in November 2025. The six presidents have already met once in the new configuration, at an informal gathering in Cholpon Ata on July 31, where they signed a declaration covering closer cooperation on transport, energy, trade, and security. Construction of Avaza began in late 2007, as Turkmenistan sought to create a national showcase on its Caspian coast. The resort’s hotels and sanatoria sit among parks and entertainment complexes, while eleven road and foot bridges span a seven-kilometer artificial canal. According to official figures, its hotels and recreation facilities can accommodate more than 10,000 vacationers. State institutions send employees there for summer holidays, echoing the Soviet tradition of workplace-organized vacations. These holidays help fill a resort where the seasonal rhythms differ sharply from everyday life in neighboring Turkmenbashi. Officially, Avaza is a district of Turkmenbashi, a city of around 90,000 residents located 580 kilometers west of Ashgabat across the Karakum Desert. The working city's economy is built around oil refining, the port, and transport. The Turkmenbashi International Seaport traces its history to 1896 and was rebuilt on a large scale before reopening in its current form in 2018. The Turkmenbashi refinery complex was founded in 1943 and remains one of the country's main oil-processing centers. The city itself was known as Krasnovodsk until 1993, when it was renamed Turkmenbashi after the title used by then-President Saparmurat Niyazov. The sea that was supposed to be Avaza's main attraction is now retreating from it. In 2024, one visitor told RFE/RL that the shoreline was 25-30 meters farther away than when his family had swum there three years earlier. A correspondent found hotels creating new beach areas farther out, while dredging was underway near the port. By September 2026, shallower water was forcing some ferries to carry lighter loads and pushing ports around the sea into costly dredging and berth work. The effects are already visible along the coast where the leaders will meet. [caption id="attachment_57713" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] The Avaza resort on Turkmenistan’s Caspian coast, where the five Central Asian presidents and Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev are due to meet on October 8.[/caption] Turkmenistan is also hosting Caspian-focused meetings around the leaders' gathering, while the October 8 agenda includes climate, water, trade, energy, transport, and regional security. At the November 2025 summit in Tashkent, the five Central Asian presidents unanimously approved Azerbaijan’s admission as a full participant, extending the grouping across the Caspian into the South Caucasus. Aliyev has been careful to mark the change. At the informal meeting in Cholpon Ata on July 31, he said: "I previously participated as a guest of honor, but today I am taking part as a full member of the team." The format dates to 2018 and was deliberately light on bureaucracy....

Military Deaths

Kazakhstan Orders Military Overhaul After 14 Die in Caspian Drills

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has replaced the country’s defense minister, three days after 14 servicemen were killed during military exercises in the Caspian Sea. Tokayev appointed Aidos Myrzakhmetov to lead the ministry, ordered a broad inspection of the Defense Ministry, and gave officials ten days to prepare a military reform plan. Dauren Kosanov, who had held the role since June 2025, was dismissed on September 27. On the same day, Tokayev appointed Myrzakhmetov and introduced him at a meeting of senior Defense Ministry officials. Myrzakhmetov, 45, is a career officer who spent much of his career in the State Guard Service before being appointed commander of the Armed Forces’ Special Operations Forces in January 2024. He graduated from the National Defense University in 2025 and holds the rank of major general. [caption id="attachment_57120" align="aligncenter" width="750"] New Defense Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan meets with the President; image: Akorda[/caption] Political analyst Adil Seifullin said the appointment appeared to continue a practice of moving officers with State Guard Service experience into senior government roles where officials face difficult decisions. He said Myrzakhmetov’s combination of experience in the service and direct command of the Special Operations Forces may have been among the factors behind his selection. Tokayev set several priorities for the new minister, including reassessing the effectiveness of military spending, overhauling the command system, accelerating digitalization, and using technology instead of personnel for dangerous tasks where possible. He also said appointments to command positions should be based on experience and professional qualifications “rather than the principle of personal loyalty.” “Our army is stuck in the last century,” Tokayev said, calling for the command system to be rebuilt using international experience. The Security Council staff and Defense Ministry have ten days to prepare a phased military reform plan, which is due to be considered at a Security Council meeting in the second half of October. Tokayev specifically instructed officials not to produce another set of lengthy concepts and road maps, but to propose concrete measures. The overhaul follows the deaths of 14 servicemen during the Khazar Qorgany 2026 exercises in the Mangystau region on September 24. Seventeen servicemen were swept into the sea during a personnel landing operation from the Qaisar boat. Three were rescued, and 14 died. September 25 was declared a day of national mourning in Kazakhstan. The Interior Ministry’s military investigative department opened a criminal case over suspected negligence and violations of navigation rules. Five members of the military command were subsequently detained as suspects. These included the chief of staff and first deputy commander-in-chief of the Naval Forces, two military unit commanders, a Marine Corps company commander, and the commander of the boat. The Times of Central Asia previously reported on the tragedy and investigation, as well as the response of victims’ relatives. The tragedy also raised questions about how the landing operation itself was organized. Azerbaijani military expert and reserve colonel Shair Ramaldanov said that, as he understood it, the Qaisar normally carried a crew of four...

Military Deaths

Deaths During Caspian Military Drills: Kazakhstan Investigates Commanders’ Actions

Fourteen servicemen in Kazakhstan’s Armed Forces were killed during military exercises on the Caspian Sea on September 24, and five Armed Forces officials were detained. On the same evening, around 100 relatives and Aktau residents gathered outside the city morgue as a serviceman read out the names of the dead. People demanded the chance to identify the bodies, and screams and crying could be heard after some names. September 25 was declared a day of national mourning in Kazakhstan. The Ministry of Defense later reported that 17 had been swept into the sea; three were rescued, one of whom was hospitalized, and 14 died. A criminal case was opened under provisions covering negligence in the performance of military duties resulting in serious consequences and violations of navigation rules. The Khazar Qorgany 2026 exercises began on September 22 in Kazakhstan’s sector of the Caspian Sea. More than 500 military personnel took part, along with ships and boats from the Naval Forces, hydrographic vessels, Coast Guard units of the National Security Committee’s Border Service, and Air Defense Forces aircraft. Relatives of one serviceman said that officials from the akimat, the local executive authority, the police, and the military enlistment office came to the family’s home to tell them their son had died. Members of other families said that some of the conscripts were about a week away from completing their military service. Based on the published birth dates of 12 servicemen on the Ministry of Defense’s initial list, they were between 19 and 23 years old; nine were born in 2006 or 2007. Among those killed was 20-year-old sailor Serzhan Ayapbergen from the Mangystau region. Before joining the military, he competed in sambo and judo, won silver at the Kazakhstan championship and the Commonwealth of Independent States Games in sambo, won judo competitions, and earned the title of Candidate for Master of Sport. Deaths among military personnel in peacetime have been debated in Kazakhstan for years. In April 2023, First Deputy Chief Military Prosecutor Maksat Kaziyev said that 270 servicemen had died since the beginning of 2020: 78 in 2020, 96 in 2021, 85 in 2022, and another 11 in the first months of 2023. According to prosecutors, 36% of the deaths were related to illness, 24% to road accidents, and 20% to suicide. Between 2018 and 2022, 86 suicides and 20 attempted suicides were recorded among military personnel. These figures cover career military personnel, contract soldiers, and conscripts, and include different causes of death. They do not show how many people died specifically while performing military duties. The deaths of conscripts, young men performing compulsory military service, are particularly sensitive in Kazakhstan. [caption id="attachment_57024" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Detention of the suspected commander / Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan[/caption] In November 2025, journalists questioned Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov about deaths among servicemen, hazing in Kazakhstan’s armed forces, and violence in military units. After a reporter said that news of serious incidents appeared almost every month, Kosanov responded with apparent...