Kazakhstan's Ministry of Defense announced Thursday the death of at least nine servicemen during naval exercises in the Caspian Sea. The ministry stated that adverse weather and strong winds swept 19 military personnel out to sea, resulting in nine fatalities.
Rescue teams recovered three individuals, with efforts continuing to locate the missing. Following the incident, the Kazakh Prosecutor General's Office launched a criminal investigation into the servicemen's deaths. The probe focuses on maneuvers at the military base in Aktau, capital of
the Mangystau region in southwestern Kazakhstan. Personnel from the Ministries of Internal Affairs, Emergency Situations, and the Prosecutor General's Office attended the scene. Defense Minister Dauren Kussainov was also dispatched to Aktau to oversee developments. These casualties occurred during military exercises,
"Defense of the Caspian Sea - 2026," announced by the Kazakh Foreign Ministry on Tuesday. The drills are taking place in the Kazakh section of the Caspian Sea, bordering Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkmenistan. Over 500 Kazakh Navy personnel, alongside
Coast Guard and Air Force units, are participating.
