Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Kazakhstan on November 9, where he had a meeting with the President of the country, Kasym-Jomart Tokayev. They attended the XIX Summit of the Russia-Kazakhstan Interregional Cooperation Committee in Kostanay. During the meeting, Putin initially correctly pronounced Tokayev’s name and surname, Kasym-Jomart Kemelevich. Putin then discussed the upcoming exchange of goods between Russia and Kazakhstan for 2022 and made an unexpected statement about Tokayev’s surname. He mentioned that the exchange of goods is projected to increase by more than 10 percent, and Tokayev clarified that the correct figure was 28.2 million dollars, not 27 million.

The media in Kazakhstan took notice of Putin’s mispronunciation of Tokayev’s surname and it became a focal point of their reporting.

Source: News from Armenia – NEWS.am