11 March 2025 – Astana – The Secretariat of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) hosted a meeting between Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan H.E. Mr. Jeyhun Bayramov and heads of diplomatic missions of CICA Member States in Astana, aimed at presenting the key priorities of Azerbaijan’s Chairmanship and vision for leading the organization.
In his welcoming remarks, CICA Secretary General, H.E. Ambassador Kairat Sarybay, praised the leadership and vision of H.E. President Ilham Aliyev, as well as the ambitious set of priorities of Azerbaijan’s CICA Chairmanship for 2024-2026, which received broad support during the recent Senior Officials Committee (SOC) meeting in Baku. He underlined these priorities align with the initiatives proposed by other Member States at the Seventh CICA Ministerial Council (MC) Meeting held on 17 December 2024.
Ambassador Sarybay also recognized Azerbaijan’s innovative approach to Chairmanship, while building on the legacy of previous CICA Chairs, and reaffirmed the Secretariat’s commitment to advancing the Chairmanship's and Member States' priorities, including focus on the outcomes of the Seventh CICA Summit in Baku in 2026 and the informal MC meeting in New York this year.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan H.E. Mr. Jeyhun Bayramov underlined the symbolic role of Azerbaijan as one of the first supporters of CICA — having been among the countries that advocated for the forum’s establishment — and now proudly serving as Chair.
Minister Bayramov highlighted the successful SOC meeting in Baku in late February 2025, which laid the foundation for CICA’s work moving forward. He emphasized that strengthening CICA’s functionality and transforming it into a full-fledged international organization remains a top priority, to be achieved through the adoption of a CICA Charter.
Appreciating Kazakhstan’s generous contribution of the new CICA headquarters in Astana, Minister Bayramov announced Azerbaijan’s plans to contribute to its decoration and to donate an art piece for the new building.
The Foreign Minister further announced the establishment of a second Deputy Secretary General position, initiated by Azerbaijan to support CICA’s expanding agenda. He also highlighted the importance of ensuring the entry into force of the Convention on Privileges and Immunities, which will significantly strengthen the organization’s legal capacity and international status of its personnel.
Minister Bayramov outlined important CICA initiatives, including the CICA Think Tank Forum, which fosters analytical interaction among Member States, and highlighted the inaugural meeting of the Coordination Council of the CICA Partnership Network of Leading Universities held on 21 February 2025 — a new advisory body to promote academic cooperation and youth engagement. Additionally, Minister Bayramov reaffirmed Azerbaijan’s commitment to establishing a CICA Women Council and to operationalizing the CICA Council of Eminent Persons.
Furthermore, Minister Bayramov emphasized the importance of strengthening implementation of CICA confidence building measures (CBMs) across a wide range of areas, including youth, academia, economy, transport, digitalization, climate, agriculture, cultural heritage and cybersecurity. Highlighting Azerbaijan’s leadership in climate diplomacy as the host of COP29, he proposed making climate cooperation a key priority for CICA’s future work.
In conclusion, Secretary General Sarybay underscored several latest institutional accomplishments. He confirmed the MC’s approval of a second Deputy General position and welcomed the endorsement of the first-ever CICA Fund project on wheat cultivation support for Afghan farmers, proposed by Kazakhstan, the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS) and the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA). He extended gratitude to Iraq for the contribution to the CICA Fund, which was allocated to this project.
Finally, Ambassador Sarybay welcomed Palestine’s ratification of the CICA Convention on Privileges and Immunities, bringing the total number of ratifications to thirteen and approaching the Convention's entry into force, now requiring only one ratification.
Ambassador of the State of Palestine, H.E. Dr. Montasyr Abuzeid, as Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in Astana, warmly welcomed Minister Bayramov and expressed readiness to cooperate with the new Chairmanship and to continue close collaboration with the CICA Secretariat. He emphasized that all Member States should adhere to the fundamental principles of CICA, including respect for the Charter of the United Nations and international law. Ambassador Montasyr Abuzeid stressed that the ultimate goal of CICA — to promote peace, security and stability — must be upheld.
