Kazakhstan invested over $35bln in Middle Corridor, other infrastructure projects development - FM

The OSCE is not just a platform for dialogue, it is and must continue to be a force for positive change in the lives of the people we serve, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu said at the 30th Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Skopje, North Macedonia, Kazinform News Agency reports.

In his remarks the Kazakh Foreign Minister stressed that since the early days of Kazakhstan’s independence, developing cooperation with – and within – the OSCE has been a key dimension of our balanced multi-vector foreign policy.

During Kazakhstan’s chairmanship in 2010, according to Nurtleu, the country sought to contribute to the revival of the robust dialogue and understanding at the highest level that must lie at the core of the organization.

He reminded that with the OSCE support, Kazakhstan hosted the summit and adopted the Astana Declaration, and its spirit remains very much relevant today.

The Kazakhstani top diplomat believes that the OSCE can still play a crucial role in promotingstability and prosperity in an ever-changing global landscape. “By recommitting ourselves to the principles of the Helsinki Final Act and other key documents, we will help our Organization develop a uniquesystem of collective, comprehensive and indivisible security.

Minister Nurtleu emphasized that the lack of the political will of the participating States to commit to a process of dialogue, however, has in recent months undermined the OSCE’s very foundation and prevented the Organization from tackling the existential crisisit faces.

“Kazakhstan is deeply convinced that preserving and strengthening our Organization, that is based on the core principle of consensus, is in the best interests of all of us. In this light, I reiterate Kazakhstan’s readiness to work towards and join the consensus on the 2024 OSCE Chairpersonship, the appointment of all four heads of the Organization’s institutions and theunified budget,” the Kazakh Foreign Minister pointed out.

He went on to add that the challenges the world faces today are unprecedented and pose serious risks to international peace and security and reaffirmed Kazakhstan’s adherence to the United Nations Charter and theinternational law.

“Given the importance of the OSCE’s human dimension, Kazakhstan joins other participating States in advancing efforts to strengthen democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. President Tokayev’s four policy reform packages, followed by a constitutional referendum, have ushered in a new era of justice, inclusiveness and pragmatism,” Nurtleu stressed.

He expressed confidence these steps contribute to enhancing stabilityandmutually beneficial regional cooperation, as well as to fostering the role of Central Asia as an important regional entity in Eurasia. In that connection, Kazakhstan is actively promoting the establishment in Almaty of the UN Regional Centre for Sustainable Development for Central Asia and Afghanistan, he added.

The minister highlighted the important role connectivity plays in facilitating stable and sustainable economic order.

Kazakhstan, in his words, has invested over 35 billion dollars in the development of major infrastructure projects, including within the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route. The Middle Corridor linking China and Europe creates new advantagesfor our full-scaletrade and investment interaction. “Together with our partners, we are giving priority to removing bottlenecks along this corridor,” Nurtleu noted.

Nurtleu also called climate change ‘another pressing challenge for Central Asia amid an acceleration of severe droughts, floods, heat waves and forest fires, adding that Kazakhstan’s priorities and national measures are being presented by President Tokayev at COP28 in Dubai.

The minister also took the opportunity to invite all delegations to a UN Regional Climate Summit to be convened by Kazakhstan in 2026.

In conclusion, he reiterated that Kazakhstan stands ready to join efforts with all participating States for the sake of peace, stability, and cooperation in the OSCE area.