STRASBOURG, September 19 (Itar-Tass) —— The positions of the Russian language in Kazakhstan are getting weaker, it experiences a gradual attack, Chairman of the World coordination council of compatriots Alexei Lobanov said on Monday.

Another meeting of the organisation, which features representatives of 25 countries opened in Strasbourg.

Presently, Kazakhstan’s state language is Kazakh, though the Russian language is still considered as official and de-jure is also used in state authorities.

“From the legislation point of view, the Russian language is protected strongly,” Lobanov said. “However, there are problems in legal practice: now all signs in state authorities are in Kazakh only, which contradicts the legislation.”

Now, Kazakhstan prepares legal addendums, where “all applications to state authorities will be possible in the Kazakh language only,” he continued. “The Russian language experiences a gradual attack.”

“In regions, where many Russians live, this politics is non-aggressive.”

At the same time, the occasions, where Russian-language schools are being closed, “are of an objective character.”

“Many Russian schools face lack of pupils,” he explained.

From September 1, the Kazakhstan state TV channel stopped officially broadcasting in Russian. Earlier, the country’s government recommended to television channels to increase programmes in the Kazakh language.