ASTANA
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Wednesday said that the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) process, which began in 1992, became crucial for regional cooperation in the past 20 years.
Speaking at the 4th edition of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Astana, Kazakhstan on Wednesday, Davutoglu said that today's meeting was an historic moment.
"When the Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev made remarks about the CICA 20 years ago at the UN General Assembly, it seemed like a vision and only a dream for some people," Davutoglu stated.
"The CICA process has turned into an important institute crucial for regional cooperation 20 years later. CICA is an international organization with 24 members, 8 observer states and 4 observer international organizations," Davutoglu underlined.
"The CICA represents almost half of the world's population. It is an excellent example of a vision turning into a reality," Davutoglu said.
"Turkey is proud to chair such an organization which is like no other in the world. Turkey will continue to work within the principles stated at CICA's declaration and to promote cooperation among member states," Davutoglu stressed.
"As the Term President of CICA, Turkey will work to further develop the organization within the consensus rules of the organization. Member countries' national traits, traditions, culture and values are not elements for division but rather happen to be a richness for CICA," Davutoglu underlined.
"Such a diversity is the real strength of the organization. We should not forget that the world of today needs such an organization," Davutoglu said.
"At times, it is not easy to reach a unity of ideas on various issues. Dialogue is a crucial tool to reach a common consensus. CICA have been successful in reaching common agreement in debatable issues," Davutoglu stated.
"As the Term President of CICA, Turkey will continue to work to find a common basis for common goals. We thank Kazakhstan for its leading role in the CICA," Davutoglu also said.
Hard to solve global security problems without bringing safety in Asian countries
Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev has said that it was impossible to solve global security problems without establishing a mutual trust environment among Asia countries.
Speaking at the 4th edition of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), Kazakhstan's President Nazarbayev said that there were several unsolved problems among Asian countries which are holding nuclear weapons and increasing their military potentials gradually.
"Without establishing a mutual trust environment in Asia, it is hard to resolve global problems in terms of security. Building a world free of nuclear weapons must be our pivotal target," said Nazarbayev.
Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia ends
The 4th edition of foreign ministers of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) ended in Astana, Kazakhstan.
The conference was held under the chairmanship of Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Kazakhstan's Foreign Minister Yerzhan Kazykhanov.
Delivering a speech at the closing of the conference, Davutoglu said that Turkey would keep holding the CICA chairmanship for another two years and making contributions to preservation of peace and stability in Asia.
China will take over the CICA chairmanship in 2014.
Meanwhile, Davutoglu held talks with foreign ministers of the United Arab Emirates, Russia, Bangladesh, Palestine and Iran on the sidelines of the conference.
