Kazakh parliament has adopted a bill to grant incumbent President Nuristan Nazarbayev life chairmanship of the country’s Security Council.
Kazakhstan’s upper house (Senate) of parliament on May 31 approved a bill allowing President Nursultan Nazarbayev to lead Kazakhstan’s Security Council for life, according to Radio Liberty’s Kazakh Service.
The draft amendments adopted by senators on May 31 also change the status of the body from consultative to constitutional, increasing its clout.
The lower house (Majilis) of parliament has already approved the draft legislation, which is expected to be signed into law by Nazarbayev.
The proposed amendments stipulate that the Security Council, described as a “constitutional body formed by the president,” will coordinate the implementation of a unified state policy on national security and defense capabilities “in order to preserve internal political stability, protect the constitutional order, state independence, territorial integrity, and national interests of Kazakhstan.”
