WELCOME SPEECH BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN

I am glad to welcome all the delegates and guests of the ninth Eurasian Media Forum!

Today international media and the public are paying much attention to Kazakhstan and Central Asia.
Just 18 years ago our region was a remote place not well known to the world. And now Central Asia is a critical component of the global economy, and regional and global security.

It is the first time in history that a Central Asian country - Kazakhstan – chairs the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

We are accomplishing this honorable mission with clear objectives, which have been supported by all the member states of the Organization.

The four T’s – trust, tradition, transparency and tolerance – became our motto as a chair.
We believe that the OSCE, stretching from Vancouver to Vladivostok, should take a very active part in forming a new architecture for the secured world.

As you know, we suggested holding the OSCE summit in Astana. The idea was supported by the member states. We are grateful to our partners for the support.

Such an event has not been held for more than ten years now. And now we together are about to make efforts to set the agenda of the upcoming summit.

One needs to discuss the most pressing issues related to security being under the jurisdiction of the OSCE, the situation in Afghanistan, as well as tolerance-related issues.
The summit of heads of states in Astana, if held, would be an important event called to revive the “spirit of Helsinki” in the new historical environment.

Today one needs to efficiently adapt the Organization to the complex environment of the 21st century.
Having emerged in the “cold war" days the OSCE is capable of aspiring to a new level of development, becoming a more efficient organization, ensuring the full range of modern security from military, political and humanitarian dimensions to economic and environmental ones.

This can be done by joining together the efforts of the member states of the Organization.
Kazakhstan as a chair of the OSCE is willing to act in order to accomplish common goals and in the common interests.

By inter alia establishing more and more contacts and facilitating communication of the Organization with other regional organizations.

Relying on the European experience, particularly the practical ideas of the OSCE, Kazakhstan is looking for and setting new forms and structures of cooperation and security.  

The Meeting on Communication and Trust in Asia became one of those. It is developing dynamically, gaining more and more recognition in Asia. Today the MCTA can become a prototype of group security in Asia, whose goals are similar to those of the OSCE.

As early as next year, in 2011, Kazakhstan will chair the Organization of Islamic Conference. 

As a secular state with a prevailing Muslim population, Kazakhstan contributes to closer contacts between Muslim and Christian civilizations.

Therefore we will try to make the dialogue between the OSCE and the OIC more active.
Today our experience is interesting both to the West and the East.

Contrary to stereotypes, the West and the East regularly “get together” in the Kazakh land for a broad dialogue at the Congresses of the Leaders of Global and Traditional Religions, as well as at other forums, one of which is the Eurasian Media Forum.

Dear participants in the Forum,

Each epoque has its major goals and, if accomplished, they ensure human progress.
In the 21st century the world is facing serious challenges.

Technical progress has made global security more vulnerable. The world is facing new challenges and threats.

Many nations cannot handle growing poverty, misery and diseases. There is an intensifying misbalance of the social and economic development of the planet’s regions.

The global financial crisis has made the situation worse.

According to the International Labor Organization last year 212 million people were unemployed, showing unprecedented growth since 2007 when there were 34 million unemployed.

Today a number of states are about to go into bankruptcy. The number of illegal migrants, trying to search for money to live on outside their countries, is increasing.

That has created social problem in the countries where they settle.

In the modern world 40 countries are involved in armed conflicts. Money required to resolve social issues is spent on arms and military programmes.

The uncontrolled “spread” of nuclear weapons is making them more accessible to international terrorists. There is a great risk of the use of “dirty bombs”.

There are a number of major problems with the deteriorating environment – climate change, end of natural resources, lower fertility of land, and shortage of drinking water.

Natural disasters, which cannot be predicted, occur on the planet. Earthquakes in Heidi, Chile and China led to enormous destruction and casualties. Just recently we saw how the eruption of a volcano in Iceland paralysed virtually the entire international air traffic.

At the moment there is no a state, even the most powerful one, that can take up the current challenges alone.

Therefore it is impossible to tackle the issues related to global security without international cooperation.
Therefore the global summit on nuclear security held in Washington, D.C., was significant.

It was the first time in the past 60 years that the leaders of 47 countries of the world and major international organizations met. At the invitation of U.S. President Barack Obama, I attended the summit in Washington, D.C.

As you know, Kazakhstan made a valuable contribution to the non-proliferation of the nuclear weapons. We became the first country that shut down a nuclear testing facility in its own territory.

Over 1.5 million Kazakhstanis were affected by the tests.
The total capacity of nuclear weapons tested on Kazakh territory was equivalent to 2,500 of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima.

After the shutdown of the Semipalatinsk testing ground other countries followed us. Other big testing facilities around the world - in Nevada, Mururoa island, Novaya Zemlya and Lop Nur - went silent.

Kazakhstan refused to maintain ownership of a huge nuclear arsenal and its security was assured by the world's nuclear powers.

At the summit in Washington, D.C. we contributed a package of new suggestions on how to strengthen the regime of non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. They were highly valued by the heads of the world's leading nations.

First, we suggested drafting and signing new international acts on nuclear disarmament. In particular, these are treaties on universal horizontal and vertical non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, as well as on prohibition of production of fissile material for military purposes.

I also launched an initiative for the international community to adopt the Universal Declaration of a Nuclear-Free World.

Today we suggest entering under the aegis of the UN into a new Global Treaty on Universal and Total Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Second, we advocated better international control over programmes for atomic power. We believe that all countries have an equal right to carry out atomic power research.

At the same time, no one should cross the line separating the peaceful nuclear programme from a military one.

Kazakhstan once again confirmed its willingness to locate in its territory the International Bank of Nuclear Fuel under the aegis of the IAAP. To do so we have specified a requirement for infrastructure and specialists, so that we are capable of protecting it properly.

Third, we called for setting up new nuclear-free zones, including ones in the Middle East.

It is important for the world's nuclear nations to give to all states participating in such zones solid guarantees of security and preferences in developing peaceful nuclear programmes.

Fourth, Kazakhstan's contribution to the mission of the Global Washington Summit will include a Conference of the Global Initiative on the Fight against Nuclear Terrorism to be held this June in Astana.

These are basically the Kazakh initiatives on nuclear security.

We intend to constructively work on them in association with the U.N., IAAP, the Group of Nuclear Suppliers and countries participating in the Global Initiative on the Fight against Nuclear Terrorism.
I call on all participants in the Eurasian Media Forum to communicate these suggestions and ideas to the international community and to politicians from all countries.

Dear participants in the Forum,

Today all the Central Asian countries should fully recognize their heavy responsibility to the world for security in Eurasia.

And first of all, it is about the need for stable development, solid peace and calmness in every single country of the region.

From the initial days of its independence, Kazakhstan has been demonstrating its commitment to being a responsible participant in the international community.

Thanks to the strategy of reforms – "democratisation through economic growth" – political stability as well as ethnic and inter-faith accord are strengthening in our country where 140 ethnic groups live.

All these years Kazakhstan has been developing, accomplishing its strategic goals. In 1997, the 2030 Kazakhstan Strategy was adopted. There we set the long-term agenda, major goals and development priorities for the country.

In the first decade of the new century we nearly doubled the GDP and industrial output.

Agricultural output increased by 1.5 times. Individual income increased by 14 times.
We efficiently reformed the management and political system that strengthened our young nation.
In just 10 years the country was able to build its new capital - Astana City.  A megopolis, which the Kazakhstanis are proud of and our guests admire, grew in the centre of the huge steppe.
Kazakhstan along with other countries went through serious hardships associated with the global financial crisis.

We successfully implemented an integrated crisis programme. Not a single facility was shut down in our country; we did not allow job cuts.

On the contrary, we reduced unemployment, having created over 400,000 new jobs last year alone. The banking sector, small and medium-sized businesses, agriculture and construction received a lot of assistance from the government.

We did not ask for assistance from international financial institutions. Using the funds of the National Fund and relying on ourselves, we handled all the hardships of the global crisis. 2009 ended with our economy showing positive growth.
And this trend is ongoing at the moment. At the end of the 1st quarter the country's GDP grew 6.6 percent, exports grew 60 percent, industry and trade grew 11.5 percent.
Due to timely action, the restructuring of debts of domestic banks is over, and the banking system has been fully stabilized.

We can recall that in the old Soviet days Kazakhstan was around number 12 or number 13 among 15 Soviet Union republics, and now we are the generally recognized leaders. In terms of GDP growth rates, its size and foreign investment per capita we are well ahead of all CIS countries.

Today Kazakhstan’s GDP is bigger than all the Central Asian economies combined. Kazakhstan is confident and willing to support the other countries of the region.
This year we began implementing a new Industrial and Innovative Programme to 2020.

This is an essential project to Kazakhstan.

This year over 140 projects worth over US$5 billion will be completed. And simultaneously the implementation of another 47 projects worth US$26 billion will commence.
These plans, if implemented, will allow us to increase the volume of the Kazakh economy considerably and improve the standard of living of our people.

An enabling investment environment has been created in Kazakhstan. To investors our country is a reliable bridge to the economies of the CIS, Customs Union, Caspian region and Central Asia.

Positive changes in the economy will go in parallel with the dynamic growth of the standard of living of the Kazakhstani people. In doing so we know that we still have lots of problems on the path towards the society of enhanced well-being. This is what we aim to achieve through our development plans. Therefore we are first of all resolving issues related to Kazakh education and healthcare and undertaking necessary legal reform.

Today the international community is speaking of the Kazakhstan way of development. We are respected because we created a regional power with a strong economy and solid positions in the world.

We prize this status and take the most vigorous steps in order to strengthen it. Our experience can serve as an example for many transit economies of the world.

Many participants in the Medium Forum have visited our country more than once and they are well aware of the pace at which Kazakhstan has been developing. Being here in safe Almaty it is difficult to imagine that just a few hours away by car in the neighbouring country – Kyrgyzstan – the situation is totally different.
A few days ago the whole world was witness to the tragic developments in Kyrgyzstan.

Unfortunately, blood was shed, tens of absolutely innocent people got killed. We grieve about these victims together with the people of Kyrgyzstan.
In five years that country has experienced two big political crises, which shows that if issues related to the well-being of the people, social security, ethnic and faith accord are not resolved, conflicts are inevitable.

In 2005, speaking at your Forum to comment on events in Kyrgyzstan that occurred at that time I cited the great poet, Abai.

I want to once again repeat: "... can poor people wish anything good to each other? The poorer people are, the cheaper their labour is. Eventually their hidden mutual hostility turns into open uncompromising animosity; they start legal proceedings, they split into parties, they bribe influential proponents in order to gain an advantage over rivals, they fight for positions".

It is hard to add anything here.

As the country chairing the OSCE, Kazakhstan is taking an active part in helping Kyrgyzstan find the fastest way out of the crisis. We will continue rendering required humanitarian and economic assistance.

At the same time, I again call on all political forces in Kyrgyzstan, the entire people, to ensure the rapid re-establishment of peace, stability, law and order, without which neither investment nor development is possible.

Such developments once again confirm the relevance of Kazakhstan's initiatives on economic integration of the countries of the region for common development and common security.

Dear friends,

Just a hundred years ago the basic principle of free journalism was stated: "Comments are free, but facts are sacred".

The role of the media in shaping the world's future is inestimable.

I am sure that the comments and interpretations that will be made during the course of discussions at the Forum, based on specific facts, will be free-ranging as well as interesting, useful and constructive.