Countdown to the OSCE Summit
Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen,
I am pleased to meet you again at a meeting of the Permanent Council exactly ten months after the inauguration of the Kazakh Chairmanship of the OSCE.
First of all, allow me on behalf of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, to express our sincere gratitude to all of you – the permanent representatives of the participating States, your staff and the Secretariat headed by the Secretary General, Mr. Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, as well as the OSCE Institutions – for your firm and consistent support for the Kazakh Chairmanship and your constructive and fruitful co-operation.
In chairing the OSCE, Kazakhstan has adhered strictly to the fundamental principles and values of the Organization as well as the strategic vision and current priorities outlined by President Nazarbayev on 14 January of this year in his video address to the Permanent Council.
> Kazakhstan Map
As the OSCE’s political manager as it were, Kazakhstan has always been guided by the principle of taking into account the views and interests of all the Organization’s participants, ensuring a balance between the three dimensions of the OSCE.
For us, one of the key challenges for the chairmanship was expanding and strengthening consensus within the Organization in resolving the pressing problems facing it and effectively countering the present-day threats and challenges to security.
In this regard, the Kazakh Chairmanship’s strategy called from the outset for the creation of the conditions needed to restore trust and harmony among the participating States.
I believe that Kazakhstan has succeeded in keeping to the motto selected for its chairmanship – Trust, Tradition, Transparency and Tolerance – and in many respects has justified the trust placed in us by all the participating States and lived up to the expectations of the OSCE community.
I should like to mention in particular that throughout the year President Nazarbayev has provided constant and direct guidance for the work of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and kept an eye on virtually all the current problems in the OSCE area.
The agenda of all the international negotiations conducted by the Kazakh Head of State in a bilateral and multilateral format has always included current issues from all three dimensions of the OSCE. This was clearly demonstrated during our efforts to resolve the political crisis in Kyrgyzstan. We are pleased that a referendum and parliamentary elections have been held in the country, and I wish to stress that the OSCE is ready to continue to provide thorough support to Kyrgyzstan so as to achieve sustainable stability and development. An important step in that regard would be the provision, with Bishkek’s consent, of the OSCE’s assistance on police matters. I request the Secretariat to inform the delegations at this PC meeting about the progress achieved on this matter.
During the first few months of our chairmanship, I managed to visit most of the countries where OSCE field operations are present, including regions with protracted conflicts. In this way, we wanted to provide political and practical support for the work of the field missions. I am pleased to note their excellent co-operation with the authorities and civil society institutions in the
host countries.
Distinguished members of the Permanent Council,
As you are aware, the Summit will be officially opened by President Nazarbayev at 10 a.m. on 1 December 2010 in the Palace of Independence.
The order for the statements by the Heads of State or Government of the OSCE participating States has already been determined by the drawing of lots.
Four sessions are planned in total.
On 2 December, after the adoption of the final document President Nazarbayev will oversee the closing ceremony of the Summit. The press centre will be housed in the Arts University, the NGO centre in the Palace of Peace and Accord, where there will be a live broadcast of the Summit.
On the evening of 1 December, an official reception in honour of the heads of delegations will be given on behalf of the President of Kazakhstan. Meetings of the Forum for Security Co-operation, the Bureau of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Preparatory Committee and the OSCE Permanent Council will be held on the margins of the Summit, along with events for the OSCE Partners for Co-operation.
On the eve of the Summit, the final segment of the Review Conference on the human dimension will be held in Astana from 26 to 28 November. An NGO Forum will also take place during the morning of 26 November, and on 28 and 29 November there will be a parallel conference for representatives of civil society. Thus we have not only met our commitments in the third basket but have in fact exceeded them.
From 26 November to 3 December we are preparing a separate programme for the participants in the Summit and the aforementioned events to acquaint them with the culture and traditions of multi-ethnic Kazakhstan and the sights of our young capital. Earlier this month, on 1 and 2 November the advance teams had an opportunity to get to know Astana in some detail from the point of view of the Summit logistics.
What is the international community expecting from the OSCE Summit in Astana?
Above all, the active participation of all the Heads of State or Government, who through their presence at the Summit will demonstrate their commitment to the OSCE, its principles and its future. This is especially important in view of the fact that the last summit meeting took place 11 years ago. It is clear that in our desire to strengthen the authority of and respect for the Organization we must in the first instance demonstrate our own respect for the OSCE.
Another key aspect determining the significance of the Summit will be the reaching of agreement on the contents of its final document. First and foremost, we must reaffirm our determination to implement unconditionally and in a spirit of goodwill all the OSCE norms, principles and commitments in all three dimensions of its work.
We also need to clearly identify threats and challenges in the OSCE’s area of responsibility, devise an effective plan of action for overcoming them and outline a strategic vision for the development of a Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian community of common and indivisible security and a way of improving the Organization itself.
In this connection, I should like to say a few words about some of the necessary components of the final document, which should form its substantive basis.
1. We need to provide a clear impetus for our common efforts to revive and strengthen the regime of arms control and confidence-building measures in our region, notably through the modernization of the Vienna Document 1999.
2. We must enhance the OSCE’s activities in combating transnational threats and challenges, including those emanating from outside our region. In this way, the OSCE will, under the terms of its mandate and together with other international actors, be able to step up the necessary assistance to Afghanistan.
3. We need to strengthen the potential of our Organization in early warning, conflict prevention and resolution, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.
4. With a view to reducing the risk of conflict in the OSCE’s area of responsibility, increased attention must be paid to inter-ethnic and interreligious tolerance.
5. The reaffirmation of the inviolability of the rule of law and respect for human rights and basic freedoms. These fundamental principles of the OSCE will be an integral part of the security community in the future as well. We must also support the formation and work of a lively and active civil society in our countries.
This being so, I should like to stress that Kazakhstan has ensured the broadest participation of international NGOs in the various events in the run-up to and during the OSCE Summit.
6. Economic freedom, social justice and environmental responsibility must also remain an integral part our common security.
7. We need to define more precisely the role of the OSCE in the system of international and regional security structures and increase the level of coordination and co-operation with other international organizations on the basis of the 1999 Platform for Co-operative Security. As you know, during our chairmanship we have endeavoured to promote effective co-operation with inter-State security structures and a pragmatic dialogue to lay the foundations for a transcontinental security belt.
8. We must strengthen the operational and institutional potential of the OSCE and reinforce its activities with a proper legal basis.
The adoption of the Supplementary Document to the Charter of Paris marked the beginning of the process of creating permanent bodies and institutions for the CSCE. We intend to continue doing everything we can to support the High Commissioner on National Minorities, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights and the Representative on Freedom of the Media. However, the transformation of the CSCE into a fully fledged Organization is still not complete.
I should like to stress in particular the importance of strengthening co-operation with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, whose support the Kazakh Chairmanship has constantly enjoyed.
We are grateful to the Asian and Mediterranean Partners for Co-operation for their active support with respect to many items on the OSCE agenda. All of this should in one way or another be enshrined in the final declaration of the Astana Summit, including an Action Plan to identify the areas, objectives and specific goals of our co-operation.
In this connection, we are placing high hopes on your successful work here in Vienna. It is very important that through concerted efforts you have already produced the first revised version of the final document, which should provide a good basis for reaching consensus. I believe that the pace you have set and the modalities you have chosen for the work on the drafts will make it possible to arrive at the next version of the document by the end of this week, thereby entering the homestretch .
As has been said many times before, the Kazakh Chairmanship believes it is a matter of paramount importance to prepare a balanced document, taking as much account as possible of the views of all the OSCE participating States. It must be recognized that this work is by no means easy. This is especially how you feel after the first round of negotiations on protracted conflicts and the human dimension. Nevertheless we hope that with your help we shall successfully complete this work.
It is difficult to overestimate how important it is to adopt a final Summit Declaration in Astana including an Action Plan for the future – strategic in terms of spirit and significant in terms of content – for the sake of strengthening security and developing co-operation in the OSCE’s area of responsibility and safeguarding the future of the Organization itself.
In summing up my negotiations in the various capitals and your discussions here in Vienna, it is fair to say today that there is a common constructive approach by the OSCE participating States with a view to making the Astana Summit a success.
I urge all of you in the remaining two weeks to concentrate your efforts on reaching consensus on the main provisions of the final document. The OSCE community is looking to the Heads of State or Government to reach a consensus on the principal questions of strengthening security and developing co-operation in the area from Vancouver to Vladivostok and to give a fresh impetus to the work of our common Organization.
The outcome of the forthcoming summit meeting will mark the seamless completion of the second stage in the history of the development of the CSCE/OSCE and unveil a qualitatively new – the third after Helsinki and Paris – stage in our co-operation when the spirit of Helsinki revived in new historical conditions will be enriched by the spirit of Astana.
The Astana Summit must also restore confidence and strengthen the unity of the OSCE, something that has often been lacking in recent years, and reaffirm the allegiance of all the participating States to our common values and commitments.
Distinguished members of the Permanent Council,
There are just two weeks left until the Astana Summit. I sincerely urge you to continue our good-hearted co-operation in the same positive spirit of trust and constructive collaboration so as to ensure the Summit’s success.
In conclusion I should like to thank you once again for all the work you have done. I should like to thank you tree times for all that you will do to ensure our common success – the successful holding of the Astana Summit.
I wish you good health and look forward to seeing you all very soon in Astana.
Thank you for your attention.
Kazakhstan: OSCE Chairman in 2010
19.11.2010
