Why Kazakhstan’s Army Is Struggling To Win Over Young Recruits

Kazakh lawmakers and military officials discussed weak military training and declining interest in army service among young people, Orda.kz reports.

At a meeting of the Mazhilis Committee on International Affairs, Defense and Security, deputies reviewed the law on military-patriotic education of citizens adopted in July 2025.

MP Aigul Kuspan said that for many years too little attention had been paid to military-patriotic education and preparing young people for military service. According to her, the work was fragmented, often formal, and lacked unified coordination and a clear final result.

She said the consequences are already visible today: some young people are not sufficiently prepared to perform military duty, conscription campaigns face difficulties every year, and interest in a military career continues to decline.

The new law is meant to change the situation. It provides for the creation of republican and regional coordination councils that will bring together the efforts of the state, educational institutions, and public associations.

The system of preparation for service has also been updated. The school subject Initial Military Training has been modernized, and pre-conscription training has been formally regulated.

The Mazhilis now intends to assess how these measures work in practice.

Original author: Ilya Astakhov

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