Kazakhstan takes over CICA Chairmanship for 2020-2022

Nur-Sultan, September 24 (KAZINFORM) - Foreign Affairs Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mukhtar Tileuberdi chaired a virtual meeting of the foreign ministers of the member states of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), Kazinform has learnt from the Telegram Channel of the Kazakh MFA. During the meeting, Kazakhstan took over the chairmanship of the CICA from the Republic of Tajikistan. Minister Tileuberdi presented Kazakhstan’s vision and priorities on the post of the CICA Chairman for 2020-2022. He emphasized that the idea of the First President of Kazakhstan-Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev on the convocation of the CICA put forward at the 47th session of the UN General Assembly in 1992 laid the foundation of a new format of cooperation in the sphere of building confidence and security in Asia. As its chairman, Kazakhstan will work towards expanding cooperation between the CICA member states and enhancing its status in the international arena. It will also promote initiatives of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced at the Dushanbe Summit in June 2019. During the ministerial meeting the participants unanimously approved the candidature of Kazakhstan’s Ambassador to Austria Kairat Sarybai for the post of the Executive Director of the CICA Secretariat. Additionally, the participants exchanged views on the most pressing issues of the international and regional agenda, making special emphasis on the cooperation between the CICA member states in the conditions of the coronavirus pandemic and in the post-coronavirus period. To date, CICA member states include 27 countries, 8 observer countries and 5 international organizations.