What they said - Notable quotes from day one

“We are forced to admit that global peace is still under threat and that mankind still has not realised the priority to be given to world dialogue versus armed contradiction and accordance versus bloodshed” – Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

“The voice of public opinion is the voice of men tired of war; it is the voice of thought (that) is the reflection of the minds of thinkers. We should hear this voice through our media” – Iranian President Mohammad Khatami.

“After a decade of freedom, the media of Eurasia have taken only the first, tentative steps towards freedom of the press, although some countries have made more progress than others.” – Aidan White, General Secretary, International Federation of Journalists.

“Where is Eurasia? I guess it’s where Europeans feel a bit Asian and Asians feel a bit European,” - Anthony Robinson, The Financial Times and Vedemosti, Russia.

“Sustainable growth can no longer be separated from solid democratic foundations… We need visionary leadership in all aspects of society, including the media.” – Professor Armen Sarkissian, The Eurasia Centre, University of Cambridge, UK.

“Kazakhstan offers exceptional conditions for tolerance, cultural dialogue and cooperation between East and West… peaceful co-existence between two continents is possible, as my country, Spain, proved centuries ago” – Francisco Pascual de la Parte, Ambassador of Spain to Kazakhstan.

“The East-West information space needs a clear-cut code of traffic rules… a guidance document for the international media” – Dariga Nazarbayeva, Khabar Agency, Kazakhstan.

“Don’t really think the Chinese are coming. If so, not yet. I see no Chinese threat at this time… The Chinese are not very anxious to take military action, especially in Kazakhstan, where they would prefer to build pipelines” – Robert Elegant, author and Asia expert.

“There is an enduring transformation in Russia’s relations with America” - Rosemary Richter, Associate Editor, The Times.

“Why do people in the Moslem world have to draw attention to their tragedies when you (Westerners) come and say words of sympathies to us?” – Shiraz Paracha, editor FENS and South and Central Asia Report (Pakistan).