President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan dismissed Defense Minister Dauren Kosanov on September 27, according to a decree published by the Akorda press service. The decree gave no reason for his dismissal.
Tokayev appointed Aydos Myrzakhmetov as the new defense minister the same day. Myrzakhmetov had served as commander of the Kazakh Armed Forces’ Special Operations Forces.
The change came three days after a tragedy during naval exercises in the Mangystau Region. On September 24, 17 service members fell from the Kaisar during a training operation in the Caspian Sea. Three were rescued and 14 died. The last bodies were recovered on September 25.
September 25 was declared a day of national mourning. Authorities launched a pretrial investigation into the deaths and formed a government commission to establish what happened. Kazakh media reported that five officials had been detained. Investigators are examining whether safety requirements were followed, weather conditions were taken into account and rescue operations were properly organized.
Kosanov became defense minister in June 2025 and was reappointed in September 2026. Before taking the post, he commanded the Air Force within Kazakhstan’s Air Defense Forces. He holds the rank of lieutenant general of aviation.
