Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu took part in the Forum of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Central Asia and the Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Co–operation in Europe (OSCE), held for the first time in this format, El.kz cites MFA.
During the event, the participants discussed important aspects of cooperation between the Central Asian states within the OSCE in the field of strengthening border security measures and preventing cross-border threats, strengthening regional interconnectedness, as well as taking joint measures to mitigate the effects of climate change.
The Kazakh Foreign Minister stressed the readiness of our country to contribute to the strengthening of the Organization and assist in overcoming difficulties in its activities. “The OSCE has certain advantages over many other organizations, first of all, a unique approach to consensus–based decision-making,” Murat Nurtleu said.
Discussing security issues, the participants noted the importance of ensuring stability in the region, taking into account the development of the situation in Afghanistan, and called on the OSCE to support all efforts to prevent a humanitarian crisis in that country. In this context, Kazakhstan actively supports the establishment of the UN Regional Center for Sustainable Development Goals Center for Central Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty.
Cooperation in the transport and logistics sphere is considered in a separate block. It was noted that the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route will create new opportunities for mutually beneficial trade and investment cooperation between Asia and Europe. In this regard, Kazakhstan supports the expansion of partnership with European countries within the framework of the EU TENT (Trans-European Transport Network) project.
The Forum participants agreed that interconnectedness is an important component of the development of modern states, contributing to cooperation, economic growth and strengthening regional stability. It was emphasized that Central Asia acts as a bridge to connect remote markets, having unique transport capabilities.
One of the topical topics of the Forum was climate change. The Kazakh delegation urged the participants to support the initiative of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to establish a project office of the Central Asian countries on climate and green energy in Almaty.
In addition, the foreign ministers discussed the preparations for the upcoming OSCE Ministerial Meeting, which will be held at the end of this year in Skopje (North Macedonia).