Kazakhstan has recently faced some of the worst political unrest that it has seen in a decade.
Protesters have flooded the streets and even gone so far as to torch government offices. Unrest has swept through the region as protesters stormed public buildings, followed by the leaders shutting down the internet after a gas price surge seemed to be the last spark to push tensions over the edge.
Some reports have suggested that the turmoil is all because of gas prices...
Rumors have emerged that the U.S. might be behind those protests, rumors that have been referred to as "Russian claims" and the US government responded calling out this assertion, denying that they are behind the unrest.
Corruption, Inequality, Poverty
There are many reasons why people are upset and protesting it isn't just fuel prices. But it doesn't take much of an uptick in fuel prices to get the general public angry and ready to protest, we have seen this be the case all over the world when fuel prices have risen. You can expect in those instances that pressure on political leaders will rise when the standard of living falls drastically and quickly for millions of people.
With many living below the poverty line there are a number of protesters who are fed up with the empty promises of government, rising inflation, and other problems in the region.
There is now a state of emergency in the region and the leader has reportedly blamed "terrorists" for the unrest that we are hearing about.
Sources:
https://nypost.com/2022/01/05/jen-psaki-dismisses-russian-claims-that-us-is-behind-kazakhstan-unrest/
https://www.ft.com/content/9dc586f8-5da4-4ff3-b71a-0b88c224a4d3