Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of joining the United Nations
On March 2, 1992, the Republic of Kazakhstan was accepted as a member of the United Nations at the plenary meeting of the 46th session of the UN General Assembly, thereby becoming a full-fledged actor of international relations.
As a responsible and reliable member of the international community, Kazakhstan has been pursuing a balanced, predictable and constructive foreign policy for all the 30 years of its independence. The country is fully committed to supporting the central role of UN in solving pressing global issues.
By voluntarily abandoning the world's fourth largest nuclear arsenal, Kazakhstan has made a real contribution to maintaining peace and international security, disarmament and strengthening the nonproliferation regime for weapons of mass destruction. The date of closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site on the territory of Kazakhstan - August 29 - was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly, in December 2009, as the International Day against Nuclear Tests.
Kazakhstan is a co-founder of the Nuclear Weapons Free Zone in Central Asia. At the initiative of Kazakhstan, the UN General Assembly resolution “The Universal Declaration on Achieving a World Free of Nuclear Weapons” is adopted on a regular basis. The Declaration demonstrates the determination of all states to move step by step towards a nuclear weapons-free world.
In September 1992, from the rostrum of the UN, Kazakhstan put forward a proposal to convene the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), which today has become a real factor in ensuring security and cooperation, uniting 27 countries of the Asian continent. Given the growing demand for confidence building measures, Kazakhstan is working with partners to transform CICA into the Organization for Security and Development in Asia.
Kazakhstan has ratified all 19 universal counter-terrorism conventions and protocols and takes an active part in implementing the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. At the initiative of Kazakhstan, in September 2018, a Code of Conduct was developed and presented for signing to achieve a world free of terrorism. As of today 89 countries have joined to the Code.
Since 2017, Kazakhstan has hosted 17 rounds of the Astana Process on Syria aimed at facilitating UN efforts to resolve the protracted conflict. Kazakhstan was also one of the first to repatriate its citizens, primarily hundreds of children and women, from conflict zones in the Middle East.
Kazakhstan is making a feasible contribution to the efforts of the world community to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan. Humanitarian assistance is regularly provided to the Afghan population, national and international programs are being implemented to train Afghan youth, including girls, in educational institutions of Kazakhstan. The opening of a Temporary Remote Office of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in Almaty is recognition of the role of Kazakhstan and the Organization's trust in our country.
Kazakhstan is convinced that promoting an ideology of tolerance, mutual understanding and cultural diversity is the key to combating hatred and discrimination. Hosted in Kazakhstan since 2003, the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, which was attended by the United Nations Secretary-General, the heads of the Alliance of Civilizations and UNESCO, is an example of interfaith dialogue. The VII Congress will be held in September 2022 in Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan actively participates in UN peacekeeping activities by sending peacekeepers and military observers to various UN missions and provides peacekeeping courses recognized by the UN.
The election of our country to the UN Security Council in 2017-2018 was a recognition of the committed work of Kazakhstan in the field of strengthening peace and international security.
In order to strengthen the system of control over biological risks and threats, and to promote biological developments to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, at the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, put forward an initiative to create an International Agency for Biological Safety.
The Republic of Kazakhstan contributes to international efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In keeping with this objective, a national architecture for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been created.
Despite its high dependence on fossil fuels, Kazakhstan aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 15% by 2030, and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
In order to assist the countries of Central Asia and Afghanistan in promoting the SDGs, the KazAID Official Development Assistance Agency was established in 2020. To coordinate development activities in the Central Asian region, we propose to institutionalize the UN Regional Center for SDGs in Almaty.
Kazakhstan attaches particular importance to the observance of universal human rights and freedoms. Our country has acceded to all the fundamental documents and conventions of the United Nations in the field of human rights protection. Ongoing efforts are being made to bring national human rights legislation in line with international standards. Close cooperation with the relevant UN institutions ensures that our international obligations are in accordance with the highest norms. The election of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the UN Human Rights Council, for the term 2022-2024, confirms the commitment of our state to promote fundamental human rights and freedoms at the national and international levels.
Presently, the efforts of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and our people are aimed at building an economically stable, socially just and democratically developed state – a new Kazakhstan, based on the principle of “leaving no one behind”.
Celebrating the 30th anniversary of its membership in the United Nations, the Republic of Kazakhstan reiterates its firm commitment to the Charter of the Organization and the principles of international law. The UN remains indispensable as the only universal organization serving the interests and urgent needs of all of humankind.
Kazakhstan will continue to contribute to strengthening the role and authority of the UN and to all areas of its activity to implement our collective desire for a better and happy future.
March 2, 2022