Delegated by His Majesty, Minister of Foreign Affairs participates in CICA Summit

Astana, Oct. 13 (BNA): Delegated by His Majesty the King, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani, participated in the sixth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), which was held today in Astana, the Republic of Kazakhstan. The summit was held under the patronage of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, in the presence of a number of leaders, heads of governments and foreign ministers in the member states. The Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani affirmed that the Kingdom of Bahrain, under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, believes that peace and human solidarity is the only way to ensure global security and stability, achieve the aspired growth and prosperity for all peoples of the world, and guarantee their right to a free and dignified life, and that international cooperation and partnership is a basic requirement to confront all challenges and difficulties that impede development and construction efforts in many countries of the world. The Minister of Foreign Affairs delivered a speech in which he conveyed the greetings and appreciation of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, and their best wishes for the Republic of Kazakhstan and its friendly people continued growth and prosperity, and to this summit success in achieving its goals towards further peace, stability and prosperity for the Asian continent and its peoples. He also affirmed that tolerance and peaceful coexistence between peoples, religions, beliefs and mutual respect is a duty dictated by the requirements of coexistence, human unity, and the values of brotherhood, cooperation and solidarity, called for by the religions, beliefs and human civilizations. He stressed Bahrain’s keenness on fostering those values and principles under the leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. He noted that this special summit, which is held in light of the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of this important conference, in an effort to enhance cooperation and develop relations between the countries of this ambitious system, is a confirmation of the depth of historical and cultural relations binding countries in order to ensure their security, stability and prosperity. He added that the world is facing bitter conflicts and disputes, and extremely difficult political, security and economic challenges, whose grave repercussions threaten international peace and security, drain countries’ resources and energies, affect the humanitarian situation and the lives of people and increase their suffering. He underlined that regional and international organisations have always had an active role in resolving crises and conflicts in a way that contributes to achieving global security, stability and peace, and promoting effective and constructive joint cooperation among their member states. He added that "as an effective and influential Asian system, and as we seek to provide sustainable prosperity for all our countries, we are called upon to unite our efforts and harness all energies and capabilities to achieve our aspirations to preserve the security and stability of our countries and build an effective strategic partnership to achieve further growth and prosperity for the good and interest of our peoples". He underscored the need to resolve regional crises and conflicts through diplomacy, in accordance with the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, which stipulates in Chapter VIII that regional organizations play their role in resolving crises and disputes between states, because human life, security and prosperity are prioritized over all political considerations and interests. He added that among their duty is to work towards achieving peace in all its regions, consolidating cooperation, strengthening friendship and building confidence among all countries and peoples of Asia. He pointed out the importance of CICA in achieving aspirations for continued success and development of this organization. "The will for change requires wisdom, insight, and an ambitious future outlook, which this conference was able to achieve, under the responsible leadership of the Republic of Kazakhstan, with steady and clear steps over the past few years. Today, we are witnessing a new chapter of constructive and effective change to devote the benevolent efforts of the leaders of our countries to promote peace, security and stability in the member states, combat terrorism regionally and internationally, and achieve the aspirations of their people for further development and prosperity" the minister added. The minister also underlined that the continent of Asia, with its huge and diverse resources, natural and economic potential and human energies, deserves to play a greater role on the international arena in all political, economic and development fields. In this regard, he noted that the Kingdom of Bahrain affirms its support for all efforts aimed at achieving these objectives, which give precedence to the people of Asia, as they are the development pillar and its main target. The Minister of Foreign Affairs concluded by stressing Bahrain’ pride in being a member of CICA, its full welcome of the initiative of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan to transform it into a full regional and international organization. He reiterated full support for the continuous development of this organization, based on those principles and values, which will help deal more effectively with the current and future challenges facing the region.