Vice FM Zhigalov: OSCE presidency a serious challenge for Kazakh diplomacy

sp;ASTANA. November 20. KAZINFORM /Gulnara Zhandagulova/ "The Foreign Ministry considers the OSCE presidency to be a serious challenge for the Kazakh diplomacy", Vice Foreign Minister Konstantin Zhigalov has said today at the symposium on modernization of the state administration system held at the Academy of Public Administration in Astana.      

As the Vice Minister noted, Kazakhstan will be the first CIS member state to chair the Organization as well as the first country eastward from Vienna, the country with mainly Muslim population that will head a European organization - one of the most authoritative in the world. In this regard, Kazakhstan is under special attention of the world community. "For those countries of Europe that have already chaired the Organization, it was not such a great challenge as it is for us", K.Zhigalov said.

As the Kazakh Vice Minister noted, the situation in the world is complicated. "In this regard, Kazakhstan is going to work in the condition of global economic crisis, complicated protracted conflicts on the territory of the Organization and current potential conflicts", he said.

Besides, he said that the main principle of the country at the post is to be an honest, impartial chair of the Organization. According to the Vice Minister, despite the fact that Kazakhstan is a member of the CSTO, CIS and a range of other organizations, we take into consideration our national interests and interests of our strategic partners.