Kazakhstan-UN cooperation set to expand
Foreign Minister Yerzhan Kazykhanov of Kazakhstan and the UN Resident Coordinator in Kazakhstan Stephen Tull addressed the participants, the Kazakh MFA reports.
In his speech Kazykhanov noted that Kazakhstan became the UN member on 2 March 1992 at the 46th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations under the Resolution 46/224, passed unanimously.
The Kazakh Foreign Minister emphasized that the event was of great political importance for the country and quoted President Nursultan Nazarbayev as saying: "The significance of this fact is invaluable: we not only reaffirmed the commitment to the fundamental principles of the international law, but also came under the protection of the most authoritative international organization, which has accepted the major task of ensuring security in the world."
Over the years of its UN membership, Kazakhstan has successfully integrated into the international community. Most of Kazakhstan's international initiatives, which are now being successfully implemented, have been put forward from the UN rostrum.
Suffice it to mention the following ones: convening of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), launch of the UN Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA), and proclamation of 29 August as the International Day of Actions against Nuclear Tests.
According to Minister Kazykhanov, since joining the Organization, Kazakhstan has actively participated in all of its main events and hosted some of the major international fora under its auspices. The most recent ones are the 18th Session of the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (October 2009), the 6th Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and the Pacific (September 2010), the 7th Pan-European Ministerial Conference "Environment for Europe" (September 2011).
Speaking of Kazakhstan's role in the field of disarmament Kazykhanov particularly noted that the UN widely recognizes the country's contribution to strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime.
"It is symbolic that the recent International Forum for Nuclear-Free World held in Astana and Semey on October 12-13 was dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the closing of the Semipalatinsk test site. Such results were achieved due to the peaceful policy implemented by the President of Kazakhstan since the early days of independence", Kazykhanov said.
Kazakhstan is the member of almost all UN specialized agencies, three UN Functional Commissions on Population and Development, on Narcotic Drugs, and Sustainable Development, two UN Regional Commissions (ECE and ESCAP), as well as the member of the UNEP Governing Council, and Executive Boards of the UNICEF, UNESCO, the UN3-Women, the Committee for Programme and Coordination, the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS).
In his speech Kazykhanov noted that Kazakhstan attaches great importance to cooperation with the UN to protect and promote human rights. "Our country has successfully passed the procedure of the Universal Periodic Review, and submitted the National Reports on Implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights," the Kazakh Foreign Minister said.
Kazakhstan is committed to its obligations for timely and effective achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), where the country has already accomplished a number of tasks.
Astana has started the implementation of the MDGs Plus agenda, which provides for higher rates and indicators. The priority issues for the country are the reduction of poverty and unemployment, maternal and child mortality, achievement of sustainable development, improvement of the environment, prevention of HIV/AIDS and support of gender equality.
He also added that the cooperation between Kazakhstan and the UN in the field of ecology is steadily growing, in particular, in climate protection, prevention of desertification and trans-boundary air pollution, biodiversity preservation and protection of the marine environment of the Caspian Sea.
In his address, Kazykhanov stressed that Kazakhstan intends to continue its active participation in all aspects of the UN's activities. In this context, he stressed that the country's achievements and its successful interaction with the UN have enabled it to plan the establishment of the KazAid Agency. Kazakhstan is also promoting the idea of turning Almaty into a hub of multilateral diplomacy under the UN auspices and establishing there a UN Regional Centre for Multilateral Cooperation.
In his opening speech, UN Resident Coordinator in Kazakhstan Stephen Tull noted the milestones of 20 years of fruitful cooperation between Kazakhstan and the UN, and also defined further prospects of interaction.
The roundtable held substantive discussions on Kazakhstan's sustainable development, including its basic aspects, such as economic development, healthcare and environment protection, energy conservation and efficiency, as well as gender equality.