8 800 080 15 05
kense@plibrary.kz
On September 25, 2007, the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan – Elbassy N. Nazarbayev presented at the debates of the 62nd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York initiatives to strengthen global security, environmental issues and United Nations reform.
In his speech, Elbassy as a recognized leader of the anti-nuclear movement, once again called on the world community to follow the example of Kazakhstan and abandon nuclear weapons. N. Nazarbayev systematically pursued a peaceful, multi-pronged foreign policy aimed at the development of good-neighborly relations and international cooperation, ensuring the long-term interests of the state. Time has shown that this strategy has stood the test of time and brought invaluable help in building an independent Kazakhstan.
The First President of the Republic recalled that in the early 1990s, he initiated the creation of the UN Peacekeeping Fund through voluntary contributions by states of 1% of their military budgets. This idea was further supported by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, proposing to redirect 1% of world military spending to development.
In his report, N. Nazarbayev paid special attention to international initiatives aimed at bringing civilizations and religions closer together. In this regard, Elbassy suggested that the UN declared the International Year for Rapprochement of Cultures and Religions, and the III Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, which will be held in 2009, be held under the auspices of the United Nations.
Noting the increasing role of Kazakhstan in the international energy market, Elbassy initiated the development of a Global Energy and Environment Strategy within the framework of the United Nations and justified the adoption of a Eurasian Stability Pact for Energy Supply, which would allow to diversify energy supplies to consumers and provide guarantees for energy producers.
The First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan stressed that he supports efforts to reform the activities of the UN. Thus, the enlargement of the Security Council (its permanent and non-permanent members) must take into account equitable geographical representation, while respecting the sovereign equality of states.
Supporting the idea of the UN on the transition of humanity to sustainable development, Elbassy focused on the progress in the implementation of initiatives he put forward at the UN. In particular, N. Nazarbayev noted the successful implementation of the initiative to convene the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia, announced back in 1992. Today, the CICA includes more than 20 member states and has established itself as an effective mechanism for interaction between states on the Asian continent, an international forum designed to bring states together, and a dialogue platform that ensures relations and cooperation between Asian states in order to ensure stability and security.
Elbassy noted Kazakhstan's initiative, put forward by him in September 2002 at the Johannesburg summit on sustainable development – the creation of a register of world environmental problems within the UN.
In proposing the register as a basic document in the development of mechanisms for addressing environmental disasters, it is emphasized that its purpose is to constantly exchange information between UN member states on trends in the global environmental situation.
Two major environmental disasters have been identified in the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan: the area around the disappearing Aral Sea and the area of the Semipalatinsk test site. In this regard, Elbassy regularly raises environmental issues at the UN: these are problems that cannot be effectively solved alone, and besides, Kazakhstan's experience or the experience of another country in solving relevant problems may be in demand.
N. Nazarbayev stressed that much had been done to restore the Aral Sea, but that without the consolidation of the efforts of the international community it would be impossible to fully resolve these issues. In this regard, the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan again proposed to give the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea the status of a UN Institute.
It should be noted that the development of an environmental strategy by the states of the world community is based on the concept of sustainable development, which is a simultaneous solution to the problems of economic development and ecology. The concerted efforts of states contribute to the successful promotion of the world community to sustainable development, taking into account the unified and integral system of the human environment.
Thanks to the systematic and forward-looking policy of Elbassy, Kazakhstan today, increasing the efficiency of resource use, increasing life expectancy, ensuring an increase in the index of environmental sustainability, is among the most competitive and developed countries in the world in terms of quality of life. This provision corresponds to the basic principle of sustainable development: meeting the life needs of the current generation of people without harming or depriving the future generation of such opportunities. At the same time, the main criteria for sustainable development are met: priority of qualitative indicators over quantitative ones; preservation of biological and cultural diversity; coordination of environmental management with the evolutionary cycle of natural processes.
It is worth reminding that the Johannesburg Summit identified five key areas for adjustment: clean water, health, agricultural productivity, energy, biodiversity and ecosystem management.
With his address, the First President of Kazakhstan - Elbassy gave a new impetus to the sustainable development of society. As the author of global initiatives, N. Nazarbayev contributes to the formation of a new architecture of the world, initiates the best ways to improve international cooperation in the field of the environment in order to effectively ensure environmental security as a component of global security.
Sources:
Website of the First President of Kazakhstan – Elbassy – http://www.akorda.kz/upload/hronika/hronika_swf/2007/index.html
Website of the President of Kazakhstan – http://www.akorda.kz/ru/special/events/prezident-kazahstana-nursultan-na...
"The concept of the transition of the Republic of Kazakhstan to sustainable development for 2007-2024" - http://adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/U060000216_