Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has characterized recent anti-government unrest in Kazakhstan as a “color revolution” which he claims was instigated by “foreign-trained terrorists.” Tokayev appears to be trying to justify his decision to ask Russia for help, and to legitimize the next phase of his government’s operations. During the initial phase of the unrest, Kazakh security forces took a beating from protesters and were on the back foot. However, after Tokayev appealed to the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for assistance, the situation was rapidly brought under control. This suggests that there is more to the events than meets the