Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am immensely pleased to be here today. I thank the organizers of this conference for the opportunity to contribute to the conversation on the topic “Guardians of the Caspian: Deciphering the Geopolitics of Eurasia”.
At the outset, let me note that I will deliver remarks in my personal capacity, and will not express agreed views of the 27 Member States of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, CICA – the organization to which I serve as Executive Director of the Secretariat.
I thank the Moderator for the thought-provoking questions offered for this particular debate. What does the term “Eurasia” actually mean? The answer is not as obvious as it seems. Some Asian and European states have an advantage and the challenge of being both, for example Kazakhstan or Turkey.
For example, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, which unites participating States from Europe and North America, former USSR States and Turkey, has recognized at the Astana Summit in 2010, only after 45 years of existence of this organization, that it is “the most inclusive and comprehensive regional security organization in the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian area.”
This is a reality that geopolitics sets its own borders, dividing lines and common areas. The fall of the iron curtain and the end of the Cold War have united Europe and, at the same time, created a new sense of Eurasian identity for some nations. Regrettably, Eurasia was and continues to be divided, and today we are witnessing even further widening of political and economic gaps on the continent.
The change in the balance of power after the collapse of the bipolar system and the emergence of a new geopolitical sub-region – Central Asia, have completely changed the Eurasian security space, and necessitated safe and harmonious integration of new economies into the global arena and the common security space of Asia, Europe and Eurasia.
The newly emerged democracies have found the right response to this challenge 30 years ago, and this response remains and becomes even more relevant today. It also answers the question raised by the distinguished Moderator – “As the world is altered by technology, pandemics, and climate change, how are Eurasian nations and regional institutions rising to the challenge?”
The response is — thinking globally and acting multilaterally. The key is multilateralism – the fundamental concept of international relations. It exists and it is a must in any global order. The mankind has long time ago reached full understanding of this existential norm. Multilateralism is the only path for peaceful coexistence of human civilizations. It is in the national interest of all countries, regardless of their size or strength. Effective and inclusive multilateralism is the best preventive measure against creating dividing lines and geopolitical confrontation.
It is indeed a challenge for smaller countries to play geopolitics. It is safer to go multilaterally, using all applicable formats and, where needed, creating new mechanisms and alliances. So did the new Central Asian democracies, being geographically land-locked between Russia, China and Afghanistan. Acting multilaterally, or, in other words, pursuing multi-vector foreign policy proved to be the right way to go.
Since we are talking about multilateralism here in India, I wish to recall that India is an initiator and founder of the Non-Aligned Movement — a counter-balance to a bi-polar system and to unilateralism, one of the most notable manifestations of multilateralism. India’s current policy of multi-alignment demonstrates continuity in its advocacy for multilateral approaches and multi-polar world.
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is a well-established fact that security is common and indivisible, economies are interlinked and globalized, the planet and its climate is one for all, and human rights are universal. It is also understood that threats and challenges do not recognize borders, whether this is about terrorism, poverty, pandemic or natural disasters.
What is needed is truly meaningful multilateral action. And there is no need to reinvent the wheel in order to act. Universal instruments of multilateralism are all in place. Respect to the principles of the UN Charter and international law is a commitment taken by all nations. The global security architecture, with the UN system in its centre, comprises full and diverse range of tools for multilateral action. What is required is to comply with and further develop multilaterally agreed norms, and proactively engage in multilateral cooperation – globally, regionally, sub-regionally, and with direct neighbors.
Another response is promoting connectivity. The broad range of economic challenges and opportunities, global and regional threats to peace and security, goals of sustainable development and environmental protection demonstrate the need for greater interaction and stronger connectivity across the Eurasian continent.
Connectivity has become an urgent need, especially in light of the ongoing information and communication technology revolution, including development of transit and transport capacities, import and export opportunities, access to capital, goods, services and labour markets, new scientific and technological capacities, and the free movement of ideas and people.
Ladies and gentlemen,
I wish to briefly illustrate my points by the example of my organization – the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia. CICA is a tool for multilateral action. It makes it happen. CICA’s main objectives of promoting peace, security, stability and prosperity in Asia are pursued through developing and implementing consensus-based multilateral approaches.
CICA unites 27 Member States in a platform for pan-Asian political dialogue and in a mechanism for voluntary implementation of specific confidence building measures, thereby translating dialogue into action. CICA offers the most comprehensive agenda, acting in five broad dimensions of cooperation – military-political, new threats and challenges, economic, environmental and human.
CICA acts in an “Asian way” – gradually, from simple to complex, focusing on what unites nations and taking advantage of political, economic, historical and cultural diversity, which is an asset of CICA. CICA acts “on the ground”. It promotes connectivity across the continent, including strengthening economic, technological, human, cultural and other links between Asian nations.
CICA is a forum and its Member States are currently considering its transformation into a full-fledged international organization, with the aim of strengthening the global role of Asia and transition to a new level of cooperation among its Members. It is expected to start the transformation process at the Sixth CICA Summit in Nur-Sultan in October 2022.
In conclusion, I wish to stress that our host India is one of the founding members of CICA and I express high appreciation of India’s continuous contribution to and strong sense of ownership over the CICA process.
Thank you.
