Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called on Central Asia to position itself as a bridge between Asia and Europe and assert its role as a unique regional player in international relations, News.Az reported citing Euractiv.
In a new opinion piece, “Central Asian Renaissance: Towards Sustainable Development and Prosperity,” the Kazakh president argues that the region “has served as a single geopolitical and spiritual arena, endowed with abundant natural resources, enormous human capabilities, and boundless cultural and historical heritage.”
The Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – had been predicted to become “failed states” because of the many challenges they face in modernizing, but Tokayev said the countries of the region have “proven their worth” and earned their “deserved place” in the international community.
Increasing political influence
Underscoring the region's growing political influence in international politics, Tokayev outlined the emergence of a new dialogue platform in the “CA-Plus” format, which has seen nine summits and high-level meetings held in this format.
He explained that other countries and international organisations have also expressed interest in this format of exchange, with the first summit meeting with Japan planned for later this year.
Preserving traditional values and combining them with the drive for modernization and advanced knowledge will lead the direction of Central Asia's development. From Tokayev's perspective, the focus today is on strengthening the region's role as the Eurasian center of international geopolitical and geoeconomic transformation.
The five countries that make up the region have developed practical strategies for foreign policy relations and become full participants in international processes, actively promoting their ideas and projects in multilateral institutions and funding influential organizations.
“This allows us to speak with confidence of the 'Central Asian Five' as a steadily developing and self-sufficient group of countries located in the heart of the Eurasian continent,” Tokayev said.
The region has been transformed into an area of beneficial cooperation with dynamic development of trade, investment, transport and communication possibilities, contributing to the increase of domestic and bilateral trade volumes.
Much attention is being paid to setting up joint ventures in sectors such as industry, energy, agriculture, transport and digitalisation, with an action plan expected to be approved between the Central Asian countries later this year.
Defense and Security Cooperation
In President Tokayev's vision, the continuing complexity of the military-political situation in the Central Asian periphery paves the way for clear avenues of cooperation in defense policy and security.
In his opinion piece, the Kazakh president recommended pursuing a comprehensive strategy to address key concerns in the “combat of traditional and new threats,” as well as “active cooperation with the United Nations and other international and regional organizations.”
This stability creates a safe space to further develop the economic potential and deepen cooperation among Central Asian countries. The region now offers opportunities for trade, investment, science and innovation.
Market diversification and expansion
According to Tokayev, the region's concentration of resources such as uranium, oil and natural gas provides it with greater resilience to external shocks and an opportunity to diversify its trade and production cycles.
With further development of transport logistics and transport hubs, Central Asia has the potential to become one of the most important regions on the planet in terms of global transport communications.
New transport corridors, such as the Trans-Caspian International Shipping Route, in which Kazakhstan and its partners are actively involved, could lead to increased volumes. Other routes that would open doors to promising markets for South Asian and Indian Ocean ports are also being considered.
Promoting regional cooperation
President Tokayev has addressed food security and the transition to a green economy as key areas to making the region self-reliant despite geopolitical crises and mitigating the adverse effects of global climate change.
Tokayev has pledged to increase the share of renewable energy sources to 15 percent by 2030 and aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, which he claims will contribute to energy security and job creation.
Another area in which Kazakhstan is leading the way is the development of inter-university cooperation through the establishment of inter-university branches and joint faculties.
The goal is to make Kazakhstan a regional educational hub, where Tokayev compares the region’s median age (28.7 years) with other regions such as North America (41.5 years), Europe (46.8 years) and China (48 years) – the country’s most valuable resource for its young intelligentsia.
Tokayev concluded that Central Asia's success is Kazakhstan's success, and the country is “ready to further develop the integration process until our strategic partners and allies in the region are ready.”
News.AZ
