Your Excellencies,
Dear colleagues, friends, distinguished guests,
I have a great pleasure to welcome you here and to celebrate breaking the fast together with you, our dear friends.
Ramadan was the month in which Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) received the holy Quran. This is a time for spiritual contemplation, fasting, prayer and acts of charity. It is also a moment to remind ourselves once more about social justice and the importance of aiding those in need and safeguarding the most vulnerable in our communities.
Humanity is on a quest to build peaceful and stable societies. And Islam, like all world religions, provides a valuable foundation for a culture of peace and tolerance.
Three years in a row the CICA Secretariat organizes iftar, which, as an integral part of fasting, brings together and unites representatives of various religions and peoples at the same table. This wonderful tradition reminds us once again of our common goal, the cause to which we dedicate our lives – building confidence, strengthening trust and maintaining peace, dialogue and mutual understanding among peoples.
Sorrowfully, the world is facing rising conflicts on ethnic, cultural, religious and racial grounds. We are witnessing severe terrorist attacks on civilians and diplomatic missions, military hostilities, including during the holy month of Ramadan. Of serious concern are attempts to translate conflicts into an interreligious plane, restrictions on the rights of believers. I strongly believe it is necessary to solve all such problems exclusively by political and diplomatic means. In this context, I welcome the recent UN Security Council resolution leading to a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
As a multilateral platform for dialogue and cooperation, uniting 28 Asian member countries with diverse cultural backgrounds and 10 observer states from different parts of the world, CICA attaches great importance to ensuring peaceful and amicable relations among the various communities and nations across the CICA area. Promoting dialogue among civilizations, cultures and religions is at the heart of CICA activities.
Availing myself of this opportunity, let me brief you on topical events on the CICA agenda for this year. I am pleased to announce that, as a result of joint diplomatic efforts, the Member States have decided on the next CICA Chairmanship, which will be the Republic of Azerbaijan. We expect that the date of the next regular meeting of the CICA Council of Ministers will soon be determined.
The Rally of Volunteer Movement Leaders under the auspices of the CICA Youth Council Meeting at the Ministerial level is scheduled for 16-17 May 2024. It is planned that President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will inaugurate the event and meet ministers and volunteers during the plenary session. We expect active participation from the Member States.
The CICA Ministerial Conference on Environmental Issues will be held on 28 August 2024. The outcomes of the Conference may serve as a foundation for institutionalizing collaboration among Member States in the realm of ecology.
A symposium dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration on the Principles Guiding Relations between the CICA Member States is planned to be held tentatively in October. The Symposium will highlight the importance of the first major document which laid the foundation for pan-Asian cooperation and reassess its content, which retains its international legal significance. The Symposium will bring together representatives from think tanks of the CICA Member States, former executive directors of CICA and CICA veterans.
The seventh plenary session of the CICA Business Council and the ninth Business Forum will be held in the fourth quarter of 2024 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. We look forward to active participation from members of the Business Council from your countries, as well as from the business community at the Business Forum.
In closing, I would like to reiterate my best wishes to you and your families. Let us stay united in our prayers and reaffirm our strong commitment to dialogue and cooperation. May peace always be with humanity.
Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh. Peace, mercy and blessings be upon you. Ramadan Mubarak.
Astana, 4 April 2024
