DUSHANBE, April 12, 2011, Asia-Plus -- Kazakhstan''s Foreign Ministry says an investigation has been launched into the beating of a Kazakh diplomat in Tajikistan, Radio Liberty’s Kazakh Service reported on April 11.

Kazakh Foreign Ministry spokesman Asqar Abdrakhmanov told journalists on Monday that diplomat Amir Zhanayev was attacked in Tajikistan''s capital, Dushanbe, on April 10 while walking with his family in the city center.

The assailants were chanting nationalist slogans as they beat up Zhanayev.

Abdrakhmanov said the Kazakh Embassy in Dushanbe made an official statement expressing its concerns over the incident and urging Tajik officials to thoroughly investigate the case to preserve friendly relations between the two countries.

Zhanayev''s condition is satisfactory and he returned to work on April 11.