At The Diplomat, Kazakhstan's foreign minister -- Erlan Idrissov -- has authored a piece discussing how his country has been nuclear weapons free for 20 years and that "Kazakhstan's recent history shows you don’t need a nuclear arsenal to feel safe." In fact, recent history in the region, coupled to statements from Kazakhstan's own leaders in the past few months, show the exact opposite. It is easy to understand why Idrissov and his fellow citizens dislike nuclear weapons. During the Cold War, Kazakhstan was used for Soviet above-ground weapons testing -- leaving a disastrous environmental and health legacy. But only a few months ago, Nursultan Nazarbayev -- Kazakhstan's leader since 1989 -- was not feeling safe without nuclear weapons. As reported by The Guardian last September: In little-noticed remarks last week, [Vladimir Putin] called into question the legitimacy of the post-Soviet state of Kazakhstan while ordering the Kazakhs to be...(Read Full Article)