Photo: Aqorda

BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 3. Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has signed decrees dismissing three senior Defense Ministry officials on October 3, according the president's press service.

Under presidential decrees, Kanysh Abubakirov was relieved of his position as First Deputy Minister of Defense - Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan; Almaz Dzhumakeyev was relieved of his position as Deputy Minister of Defense; and Kanat Niyazbekov was relieved of his position as Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan.

On September 24, 2026, in Kazakhstan’s Mangystau region, 17 servicemen fell into the water due to a storm and strong winds during the Khazar Korgany-2026 exercises in the Caspian Sea. Fourteen of them died.

Following the incident, on September 27, Tokayev dismissed Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov. Major General Aidos Myrzakhmetov, who had previously headed the Special Operations Forces, was appointed as the new Defense Minister.

On September 27, Tokayev instructed officials to establish not only the circumstances of the tragedy, but also what had prompted the concept of the exercises and whether the tasks set during them corresponded to modern threats.

The president noted that servicemen participating in the exercises had not been provided with the necessary equipment, including marine life jackets.

Tokayev also instructed officials to improve the efficiency of budgetary resource use and prepare a Military Reform Plan. The Office of the Security Council, jointly with the Defense Ministry, was instructed to submit the Military Reform Plan within 10 days.