ASTANA -- Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) has reached agreement with the Kazakh Foreign Ministry over the accreditation of dozens of its journalists in the Central Asian country amid fears the government was trying to stifle independent media.
Details of the agreement, reached on April 23, were not immediately available.
"We welcome the agreement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," RFE/RL President Stephen Capus said in response to the deal.
"Throughout this process, all we have wanted was for our journalists to be able to continue their vital work in Kazakhstan safely, without compromise. We remain committed to serving our audiences with independent, trusted reporting and I am confident that this agreement will enable us to do just that."
In January 2023, the ministry denied accreditation to 36 journalists of RFE/RL's Kazakh Service, known locally as Radio Azattyq. Some of the correspondents had not been able to extend their accreditation since late 2022.
The situation around the accreditation of RFE/RL correspondents turned into a hot topic in January after a group of Kazakh lawmakers approved a draft bill that would allow the tightly controlled former Soviet republic's authorities to refuse accreditation to foreign media outlets and their reporters on grounds of national security.
According to the draft legislation, the Foreign Ministry could refuse accreditation to foreign media outlets and their reporters "in case of a threat to the national security of the Republic of Kazakhstan."
The bill states that any activities of foreign media and their journalists without accreditation are banned, and the decision to suspend the activities of foreign media in the country can be made by the ministry without a court ruling.
In accordance with current legislation, the Foreign Ministry must make decisions on accreditation within two months of receiving an application. In case of refusal, the ministry must provide an explanation for its decision.