NEWS

Statement by the Chairman-In-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,

H.E. Mr. Kanat Saudabayev, Secretary of State - Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan at the United Nations Security Council

5 February 2010

New York

Mr. President,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In my capacity of the Chairman-in Office of the OSCE in 2010 I would like to express my appreciation to the UN and its Security Council for close attention to the activities of our organization. As you may know, the OSCE with its 56 participating States is the largest entity responsible for security in the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian region.

The unanimous decision of all 56 OSCE participating States regarding Kazakhstan’s Chairmanship in the organization has symbolized an objective acknowledgement and a commendation of impressive accomplishments of our people, in the short span of our independence, in social, economic and political development, under an outstanding leadership of President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Kazakhstan’s Chairmanship is no less important for the OSCE itself. For the first time in that organization’s history, it is chaired by a Central Asian and a post-Soviet state. Much of the current OSCE dynamism comes from the emerging Asian segment on the organization’s zone of responsibility. The OSCE has, thus, demonstrated its will to really bring the countries to the east and to the west of Vienna closer together and to adapt to the present-day realities.

At the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on 14 January 2010, President Nazarbayev, in his video address, outlined the strategy and priorities of Kazakhstan’s OSCE Chairmanship. First and foremost, we are firmly committed to the fundamental principles and values of the OSCE.

For the current Chairmanship, its main task is to fully promote compliance with fundamental principles of the UN Charter and Helsinki Final Act.

We also intend to work to strengthen the OSCE in every possible way and to enhance its effectiveness and its ability to adequately respond to emerging challenges and threats.

During our Chairmanship, we are determined to promote a balance between all three OSCE “baskets” - political and military, economic and environmental, and human, which will help to address not only the symptoms but also the causes of security-related problems.

To a large extent, the implementation of our priorities will depend on our ability to overcome a crisis of trust created by the dividing lines and vestiges of the Cold War that still exist in the OSCE's area. In this regard, we pin high hopes on the continuation of the Corfu process, which has revealed general dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs in the organization’s zone of responsibility.

We intend to strengthen the role of the OSCE in the European security architecture. In this context, we agree with the need to discuss the Russian Federation's initiative regarding a Treaty on European Security.

The OSCE should become a meaningful “platform for common security” in its zone of responsibility. A relevant dialogue will provide us with an opportunity to strengthen relations of the OSCE with the UN, in accordance with the 1999 Platform for Co-operative Security. We count on the contribution of the UN and its structures to this process.

Kazakhstan, as a recognized leader in the worldwide process of non‑proliferation, will try to increase the OSCE’s contribution to achieving the goals of UN Security Council resolution 1540. We commend the outcomes of the Security Council summit on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament, held last September, which unanimously adopted resolution 1887.

As the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, we welcome the talks between the Russian Federation and the United States on a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. We express our hope for a successful global nuclear security summit and the NPT Review Conference.

We reaffirm the OSCE's commitment to preserving the European regime for conventional arms control and confidence and security-building measures. It is our hope that, in 2010, there will be progress towards the entry into force of the Agreement on Adaptation of the CFE Treaty.

At the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Athens, the participating States agreed to deepen cooperation in combating terrorism, accumulation and proliferation of small arms and light weapons, illegal migration, as well as trafficking in weapons, drugs and people. The OSCE is ready to contribute to the efforts of the UN on those tracks and to identify new ways to increase “value added.”

The upcoming conference on prevention of terrorism, to be held in Astana this October, will be a tangible contribution to the efforts to address transnational threats and challenges, including terrorism, religious extremism, illicit drug trafficking and organized crime.

The OSCE will continue to promote among its participating States the ratification of relevant UN conventions and implementation of Security Council resolutions, such as those on combating terrorism, non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and small arms and light weapons.

Kazakhstan will make an effort to contribute, to the best of its abilities, to the resolution of protracted conflicts, three of which are in the post-Soviet area. Taking into account our shared history, closeness, in terms of mentality, between Kazakhstan and all the parties to the conflicts as well as high standing and trust enjoyed by President Nazarbayev within the CIS, we hope to give some impetus to the efforts of our partners involved in that complex process.

That will be the purpose of my visit, in the capacity of the OSCE Chairman‑in‑Office, to the Southern Caucasus, scheduled for 15 February 2010. The OSCE and the UN, together with the European Union, co-chair relevant Geneva talks. Further close coordination among all three parties has great importance for the efforts to promote stability in the zones of conflicts in the Southern Caucasus as well as to create favorable conditions for their peaceful settlement.

In Kosovo, in the course of 2010, the OSCE Mission will continue to implement its mandate as an integral part of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), based on the UN Security Council resolution 1244.

The OSCE commends the outcomes of the UN Alliance of Civilizations Regional Conference, held in Sarajevo on 14 December 2009, which adopted the Regional Strategy of Intercultural Dialogue and Cooperation in South-Eastern Europe.

The strengthening of coordination between the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (Ashgabat, Turkmenistan) and OSCE field presence seems to be a promising area of interaction in the Central Asian region.

Overall, monitoring and identification of any positive signals or signs of a potential escalation of protracted conflicts as well as the use of preventive mechanisms of political consultations in the OSCE framework will become a key tool during our Chairmanship.

We believe that a more efficient use of capabilities of such organizations as the OSCE would help the UN and its Security Council to more effectively prevent potential security threats and respond to them. The OSCE and other regional intergovernmental organizations play an important role in the security area, with their unique resources and advantages and good understanding of the situation on the ground. This point was highlighted at the thematic debate of the UN Security Council, held in January 2010 under the Chinese Presidency, which produced a fruitful exchange of views on advancing cooperation of the UN with regional and sub-regional organizations in the maintenance of global peace and security.

A top priority for the Chairman-in-Office is, of course, further involvement of the OSCE in the stabilization of the situation in Afghanistan.

In our current capacity, we plan to focus the organization’s efforts on a better protection of Afghanistan's borders with its Central Asian neighbors, including through the training of Afghan personnel at the OSCE Border Management Staff College in Tajikistan and the OSCE Customs Training Center in Kyrgyzstan.

All these years, our country has been actively supporting the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). For instance, on 29 December 2009, we signed an agreement on land transit of NATO cargo. Such agreements were signed with Spain, Germany, the United States and France.

At the same time, we are convinced that it is impossible to ensure that country's transition to a peaceful and constructive life through military means alone. The time has come for a major expansion of the human dimension of our common efforts, as confirmed by the outcomes of the London conference on Afghanistan.

That is why Kazakhstan has allocated, over the past several years, 4 million US dollars towards the reconstruction of schools, hospitals and roads, has provided substantial food and other humanitarian assistance, has made a 1 million US dollars contribution to a special OIC Islamic Solidarity Fund, part of which will be used for Afghanistan's rehabilitation. We also express our readiness to provide wheat, mineral fertilizers, agricultural equipment, construction material and other goods.

In this regard, we call on international donors to use Kazakhstan's significant potential in this regard.

Training of national personnel is essential for the rehabilitation of Afghanistan and its future. This year, we will start of the implementation of Kazakh-Afghani agreement that provides for training of a thousand of Afghani professionals at Kazakhstan’s educational establishments. Despite the repercussions of the global financial crisis, Kazakhstan has allocated 50 million US dollars for that purpose.

In general, Kazakhstan intends to fully use the capabilities and the potential of the OSCE. Close interaction between the OSCE and the UN, which is the main coordinator of international operations in Afghanistan, is in our common interests.

All OSCE initiatives will be pursued in full coordination with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and other entities.

The current Chairmanship attaches great importance to the development of the OSCE economic and environmental dimension with an emphasis on achieving, albeit modest, but tangible results and real “value added.” In the framework of the “second basket”, we intend to focus on the development of the Eurasian transit-transport potential and continental transport corridors, which will undoubtedly contribute to the efforts by the participating States to overcome the global crisis.

Environmental security of the OSCE participating States remain an important challenge, with the Aral Sea tragedy being one of the most critical problems in the area. In this context, the current Chairmanship will work to develop close cooperation with the UN Economic Commission for Europe and the Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia.

There is still room for cooperation between the OSCE and the UN in such a new area as energy security. In Athens, the OSCE participating States agreed to intensify a dialogue on energy security issues, which provides for, among other things, consultations with relevant international and regional organizations in order to define a complementary role for the OSCE.

We intend to continue to attach great importance to the third - human - dimension of the OSCE's agenda. Respect for and protection of fundamental rights and freedoms of people, development of democracy, fight against intolerance and discrimination of any kind remain an integral component of comprehensive security.

Drawing on our highly positive experience in ensuring lasting peace and accord in our multiethnic and multi-faith country, we intend to make tolerance and intercultural dialogue a major priority of our Chairmanship.

That will be the central theme of the OSCE high-level conference on tolerance and indiscrimination, scheduled to be held in Astana on 29-30 June 2010, especially in the light of the declaration of 2010 as the International Year of Rapprochement of Cultures.

In the context of human rights and fundamental freedoms, it is imperative to ensure a synergy effect of the OSCE activities and the work of other international organizations, primarily, the UN and its Human Rights Council as well as the Council of Europe, with their extensive systems of international legal instruments. In particular, the OSCE counts on a close cooperation with the relevant UN system structures on issues of gender equality and the rule of law.

Finally, as a regional arrangement in accordance with Chapter VIII of the UN Charter, the OSCE continues to offer a wealth of experience to other regional organizations. Over the last two years, the OSCE has shared its experience with the African Union, League of the Arab States, ASEAN Regional Forum and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-building Measures in Asia (CICA).

In the upcoming months, our organization will continue an active dialogue with its Asian and Mediterranean Partners for Co-operation, including Japan, which currently has a seat in the Security Council. In 2009, the OSCE welcomed Australia as the 12^th Partner for Co-operation, a fact that shows the organization’s determination to broaden dialogue with partners beyond its zone of responsibility area, in order to maintain international peace and security.

Mr. President,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Recently, thanks to a political will displayed by a number of OSCE participating States, some positive trends have emerged in the settlement of certain protracted conflicts; relations between some countries have been 'reset’, and the contours of a promising dialogue on key issues on the organization's agenda have become more clear.

Given the importance of the need to preserve and build upon these positive trends in order to eventually mark, through collective efforts, the completion of yet another stage in the organization’s development and to usher in a new era of partnership in the OSCE area, we have put forward an initiative of convening an OSCE summit later this year. The 35^th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act, the 65^th anniversary of the end of Second World War and the 20^th anniversary of the Charter of Paris for a New Europe and the Document of the Copenhagen Meeting, all celebrated in 2010, give us a good opportunity to have a serious analysis of the current OSCE role in security arrangements in the area from “Vancouver to Vladivostok” and to outline the priorities for further OSCE activities. The agenda of the summit could include such pressing issues as further development of the Corfu process, a common architecture of trans-Atlantic and Eurasian security, rehabilitation and assistance to Afghanistan, issues relating to tolerance.

In conclusion, I would like to point out that over the 35 years of its functioning, the OSCE has established an unparalleled system of collective, comprehensive and indivisible security. At the same time, as President Nursultan Nazarbayev noted, “the positive historical resources of the OSCE are limited” and “today, it is not permissible to carry on endlessly drawing the so-called “red lines” and playing the “zero-sum games.” The need to improve effectiveness of international organizations in meeting new global challenges has come to the fore. In view of new threats and challenges, our common mission is to make the OSCE even more relevant, useful and effective. In this regard, President Nursultan Nazarbayev has come up with a fitting definition of Kazakhstan’s future activities in its capacity of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office. It is four “T”s: "trust, traditions, transparency and tolerance.”

The focus of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office is to improve interaction and complementarities among the OSCE and the UN in various fields. We sincerely count on the support and cooperation of the UN Security Council.

Thank you for attention.