Moscow, 24 May 2023
EAEU in a Changing World. Session: “EAEU – SCO – BRICS: An Open Integration Dialogue”
Dear Mikhail Vladimirovich,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am pleased to have the opportunity to participate in the Second Eurasian Economic Forum. Last year, we had a very interesting discussion in Bishkek. Today, I will also endeavour to make a modest contribution to the discussion on the prospects for a broad-based integration dialogue across Asia and Eurasia, as well as its potential global implications.
The Asian continent is not only the world's largest and most populous continent, but also its most dynamic in terms of development, having recorded the highest rates of economic growth in recent years. It is also important to note that technological progress is increasingly shifting towards Asia. One of the key drivers of this growth is the consolidation of countries' efforts to implement projects that many of them would be unable to undertake individually. The importance of multilateral processes and integration frameworks in achieving economic development objectives has increased significantly in the current millennium.
The Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) also intends to contribute to this important process. Today, CICA brings together 28 Member States on a platform for pan-Asian dialogue, covering 90 per cent of Asia's territory and half of the world's population. At the Sixth CICA Summit, held in Astana in October 2022, the Heads of State and Government of the Member States decided to launch the transformation of the Conference with a view to elevating cooperation among its members to a new level.
Our organisation offers one of the most comprehensive agendas, encompassing five broad dimensions of cooperation: military-political, new challenges and threats, economic, environmental, and human. At the same time, economic issues account for at least 60 per cent of CICA's agenda.
CICA's economic agenda encompasses numerous areas of practical cooperation that address the needs of its Member States and the challenges of the contemporary international economic agenda. Given that many CICA Member States also participate in the work of the SCO, the EAEU and BRICS, aligning the efforts of these regional organisations appears both feasible and desirable. CICA can serve as an effective outreach platform for these organisations.
Cooperation between CICA and the SCO has been particularly active and has been characterised by a partnership since 2014, when a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Secretariats of the two regional organisations in Shanghai.
On the sidelines of the Sixth CICA Summit in Astana, a Memorandum of Understanding between the CICA Secretariat and the Eurasian Economic Commission was signed on 13 October last year. The process of finalising a practical cooperation plan between the two organisations is now at an advanced stage. I am confident that this cooperation will deliver tangible results for all the countries participating in our respective organisations.
In December 2021, the CICA Member States instructed the Secretariat to initiate contacts with ASEAN with a view to establishing mutually beneficial partnership relations. I hope that we will be able to establish such a partnership as early as this year.
More broadly, I would like to emphasise that CICA is a young organisation. Thirty years ago, in 1992, Kazakhstan proposed the establishment of this unique multilateral platform from the rostrum of the United Nations. Today, CICA offers distinctive added value through its promotion of the principles of genuine multilateralism, inclusivity, interconnectedness, equality and consensus. One of CICA's key strengths is its non-bloc nature, which distinguishes it from a number of other organisations operating in the region.
The uniqueness of CICA's membership and the breadth of its agenda make it a highly valuable complement to, rather than a counterweight to, other regional frameworks, including the EAEU, the SCO and others.
As an organisation dedicated to pan-Asian cooperation, CICA fits naturally into the concept of the Greater Eurasian Partnership. The ideas underpinning the development of a network-based community within the Greater Eurasian Partnership, founded on the principles of voluntariness and consideration of the interests of all parties, deserve further promotion and enjoy the support of many Member States, including Kazakhstan, the current Chair of CICA. CICA provides a suitable dialogue platform where interested states could discuss the parameters of a Eurasian partnership.
The wide range of economic challenges and opportunities, global and regional threats, and the Sustainable Development Goals demonstrate the need for closer cooperation and greater interconnectedness, not only across the Asian continent but also throughout Greater Eurasia. CICA could become one of the stakeholders in this process, complementing other regional frameworks and enabling the participation of countries in the Middle East that are not covered by other Eurasian integration structures.
I am confident that combining the capacities of regional organisations will multiply their collective potential. This objectively serves the interests of the countries across this vast region and generates tangible benefits for all. In other words, in this case, one plus one is clearly greater than two.
In conclusion, I would like to thank the organisers for hosting today's Forum so successfully and for their warm hospitality. I wish all participants every success in their endeavours.
Thank you for your attention.
