Kazakhstan's Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov has urged world leaders to unite efforts to combat the threat posed by the Islamic State (IS) group.
In an interview with The Associated Press in New York late on September 26, Idrissov said Kazakhstan was until recently "immune from fundamentalism and extremism."
But prosperity and growth have made it easier for "crazy” ideas to take root in some parts of the country’s population, he added.
Idrissov said an estimated 200 Kazakh nationals were now fighting in Syria.
He called on the United States, China, Russia, and Europe to overcome political divisions and come together to reverse the rise of the IS group, which controls large swaths of Syria and Iraq.
The Kazakh minister looked to the meeting between the U.S. and Russian presidents, Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin, at the United Nations later on September 28 to set in motion a change in tactics.
Based on reporting by AP