Central Asia - European Union High-level Political and Security Dialogue meeting held
The EU delegation was led by Deputy Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora. Attaching great importance to developing cooperation with Afghanistan for ensuring stability and security in Central Asia and Europe, Mirwais Nab, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, was invited to take part in the meeting, the Kazakh MFA’s press service reports.
During the discussions held, the parties exchanged their perspectives on interregional cooperation, including the EU's programmatic activities in Central Asia, joint efforts aimed at providing support and resolving the situation in Afghanistan, as well as preparations for the 17th Central Asia – EU Ministerial meeting scheduled this autumn in Dushanbe.
The European side, reaffirming its strong commitment to Central Asian intraregional cooperation, highly appreciated the ongoing regional processes and the resolute efforts made for interstate rapprochement.
In his speech, the Kazakhstani diplomat told about the situation in the region, the national and regional efforts to support stability and sustainable development, as well as made a number of constructive proposals aimed at further building up interregional interaction in politics, economy and security.
The participants have reaffirmed their mutual interest in cooperation for border management, meeting regional challenges and threats related to terrorism and extremism, illicit drug trafficking, expanding cooperation between law enforcement agencies, as well as elaborating joint approaches for the Afghan settlement.
Regional sustainable development challenges, including cooperation for rational transboundary water resources management, addressing environmental issues and climate change, were also widely deliberated and discussed.
Following the meeting, the parties agreed to continue their firm efforts on full implementation of the EU Strategy priorities for Central Asia.