What Undermines Kazakh Stability

Kazakhstan is on high alert. Militants attacked two gun shops and subsequently stormed a military unit of the national guard in the western city of Aktobe on June 5. Kazakh security forces have since captured and killed many of the assailants, though authorities continue to seek several suspects still at large. But this is not the only crisis developing in the country. Protests across Kazakhstan on May 21 led to the detention of more than 1,000 people. Combined with growing economic difficulties and the looming issue of President Nursultan Nazarbayev's succession, the government's ability to manage multiple crises may soon come into question.