Tokaev revealed which words from Nazarbayev foreshadowed the power crisis in Kazakhstan.

According to Tokayev, the era of Nazarbayev's governance had both advantages and disadvantages, and past events should be evaluated objectively.

“One cannot alter history on the fly to suit political trends, and, moreover, it is dangerous to rewrite history from scratch,” the president stated.

He also noted that after Nazarbayev's resignation, he did not exhibit "political delicacy," continuing to hold meetings with ministers, akims, the head of the National Bank, and the prime minister.

“There was even a joke: ‘Nazarbayev went for a promotion after his resignation and got the President under his command.’ But in reality, it was no laughing matter,” Tokayev recalled.

He pointed out that at that time, such a situation caused confusion among officials, who were unsure about which directives to follow.

“The pivotal events that predetermined the real crisis of power were Nursultan Nazarbayev's statement at the Astana Club meeting in November 2021 about the possibility of returning to Akorda, referencing the 92-year-old Mahathir Mohamad, as well as the former president's participation in the CIS summit in St. Petersburg in December of the same year. The day before, he received a provocative letter from a local political scientist justifying decisive measures to restore the ‘Golden Age of Elbasy.’ However, it is now necessary to show common sense and properly assess Nursultan Nazarbayev's historical contributions to Kazakhstan,” the president said.

He also commented on Nazarbayev's meeting with Putin in December 2024. According to Tokayev, this was already the second meeting of the former president with the Russian leader in the past year, with the first one occurring in the fall and not reported by the media. The president believes this was more a meeting of old friends and colleagues.

“It is important to remember that, as the former chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Kazakh SSR, a party leader, and then the president of sovereign Kazakhstan, he is morally and politically closely tied to the Kremlin,” Tokayev remarked.

When asked how often he currently communicates with Nazarbayev, Tokayev replied that they have phone calls approximately once a month.