The Ministry of Culture and Information of Kazakhstan has held events with Internews, funded by USAID, but has not received direct or indirect funding from the US to combat disinformation; the agency carries out such work independently and independently.
In February, The Daily Wire's YouTube channel published a recording of a briefing by White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt, where she listed the spending of the previous US administration under former President Joe Biden. Leavitt reported that, among other things, the US under the Democrats allocated “$4.5 million to combat disinformation in Kazakhstan.“
“The ministry, together with Internews, has held various events to improve media literacy, as well as various courses to develop professional skills among representatives of the media community. However, the ministry has not received any funding directly or indirectly. It should be noted that the ministry is conducting independent work to combat disinformation within the framework of its own projects. This work is carried out jointly with all interested state agencies and public institutions“, the response of the Ministry of Culture says.
The department noted that USAID “implements a number of programs in Central Asia and Kazakhstan aimed at supporting economic development, energy security, healthcare, human rights protection and civil society.“ “ In total, by the end of 2024, USAID had 28 projects under implementation (in the fields of economy, energy, healthcare, civil society and media), some of which have already been completed. Over 26 million USD were allocated for the implementation of these projects in 2023-2024. Individual projects cover, in addition to Kazakhstan, other countries of Central Asia“, the ministry reported. They added that the agency has not yet received official information from the Kazakh Foreign Ministry about the termination of USAID's activities in the republic. The Ministry of Culture noted that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs state agencies upon receipt of a corresponding note from the US Embassy.
The Internews representative office has been operating in Kazakhstan for more than 25 years. According to the organization's website, its partner is USAID.
Immediately after the inauguration of the new US President Donald Trump on January 20, the US Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE) began a large-scale audit of the country's state budget expenditures. According to statements by entrepreneur Elon Musk, who heads DOGE, the service expects to reduce Washington's state spending by $2 trillion. In fact, at Musk's initiative, USAID's activities were temporarily suspended for the purpose of its further reorganization.