STATEMENT  by H.E. Mr. Mukhtar TILEUBERDI   Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan  at the General Debate of the 81st session of the United Nations  General Assembly  New York, 25 September 2026

STATEMENT 
by H.E. Mr. Mukhtar TILEUBERDI  
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan 
at the General Debate of the 81st session of the United Nations 
General Assembly 
New York, 25 September 2026
 
Mr. President, 
Distinguished Delegates, 
I congratulate His Excellency Mr. Khalilur Rahman 
on his election as President of the eighty-first session 
of the General Assembly and assure him that he can 
count on Kazakhstan’s full support throughout this 
session. 
Excellencies, 
Kazakhstan remains firmly committed to the 
purposes and principles of the Charter of the United 
Nations and to effective multilateral cooperation. 
Guided by a pragmatic and proactive foreign 
policy, we continue our efforts to strengthen 
international peace and security and to advance 
pragmatic solutions to our shared global challenges.  
For Kazakhstan, multilateralism is a key instrument 
for building trust, finding common ground, and 
delivering results for our citizens and future 
generations. It is a key component of our own long-term 
social economic development.   
Kazakhstan has embarked on profound political 
transformation in response to societal demand and emerging challenges.  
Our new Constitution reinforces the foundations 
of national sustainable development by placing greater 
emphasis on human dignity, human capital, 
education, innovation, responsibility.  
and environmental 
We have also continued to strengthen the rule of 
law, public accountability and the protection of human rights.  
Elections last month to the new Kuryltai
brought into parliament a diverse set of voices, 
including a historic high 34% of women.  
Mr. President, 
I express my country’s grave concern as the world 
continues its slide toward uncertainty and division.  
The erosion of trust among nations is rapidly 
reshaping the international order. Our collective inability 
to prevent conflicts, our collective indifference toward 
humanitarian crises, and our collective reluctance to 
seek common solutions to shared challenges are all becoming normalized. 
Trust cannot be restored when international law 
is applied selectively and commitments remain unfulfilled.  
Our response must be grounded in the fundamental 
values we have affirmed together: freedom, equality, 
justice, and respect for human dignity.   
President Tokayev has repeatedly underscored the 
indispensable role of the United Nations as a single 
universal platform, uniquely capable of bringing the 
States together to address the challenges we face. 
But to fulfil its potential, UN must be able to act, adapt, and deliver. 
We fully support the UN-80 initiative.  
The success of the reform should be measured not 
by what is cut or reorganized, but by whether the United Nations 
prevents conflict more effectively, 
responds more rapidly to crises and delivers better 
results for all member States.  
Central to this renewal is reform of the Security 
Council. Broader representation of Asia, Africa and 
Latin America in the Council, as well as a greater voice 
for developing countries and for middle powers is a moral imperative. 
Equitable geographical representation must apply 
throughout the United Nations system as a condition of legitimacy and credibility. 
The selection of the next Secretary-General will 
be one of the defining moments of this session.  
Kazakhstan supports a transparent, inclusive and 
merit-based process conducted in full accordance with the Charter. 
Mr. President, 
The international security environment continues to 
deteriorate. World military expenditures reached a 
record 2.9 trillion dollars in 2025. Our small planet is 
home to more than twelve thousand nuclear weapons, 
each one capable of untold damage and sorrow. Every 
year, we seem to lose more biodiversity yet gain more armaments. 
For Kazakhstan, nuclear disarmament in particular is not an abstract doctrine.
It is a responsibility born of national experience. 
This year marks thirty-five years since the closure 
of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, thirty years 
since the CTBT opened for signature, and twenty years 
since the signing of the Semipalatinsk Treaty on a 
Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia. 
Our experience of renouncing the world’s fourth
largest nuclear arsenal did not weaken our State. To 
the contrary through international trust, it strengthens sovereignty, 
enhances security and promotes development. 
Today, that trust is again in danger. New START 
has expired, while the 2026 NPT Review Conference 
ended without substantive outcome for the third consecutive cycle. 
Nuclear weapon states must never confuse the 
absence of agreement with a vacuum of obligation. 
They remain responsible until we secure a world free of nuclear weapons.  
Kazakhstan advocates the relaunch of high-level 
dialogue among nuclear powers and is ready to host one of their next meetings. 
We will also continue advancing our earlier 
proposal to strengthen the BWC through establishing 
an International Agency for Biological Security. 
Distinguished Delegates, 
Peace and stability are a prerequisite for 
sustainable development. We stand firmly for 
diplomacy and dialogue, and against the escalation of tension and the use of force. 
We remain deeply concerned by the Ukrainian 
crisis, which continues to take lives, erode global trust 
and undermine international security. 
Even the most difficult conflicts must ultimately be 
resolved through diplomacy and negotiation. 
Beyond the tragic loss of life, Kazakhstan strongly 
condemns the repeated drone attacks against 
Kazakh crude oil export infrastructure, including 
against commercial vessels in the Black Sea basin.  
Such incidents endanger civilian navigation, disrupt 
international trade, and threaten the stability of global energy supplies.  
We call on all parties to uphold international law and 
take all necessary measures to protect critical 
infrastructure and ensure the safety and continuity of civilian commerce. 
Political and diplomatic means remain the only 
viable path towards ending hostilities and achieving 
a sustainable resolution of the Middle East crisis.  
The ongoing escalation carries serious 
implications for regional and international peace 
and security, as well as for economic stability, 
transport connectivity and energy security. 
A just and lasting peace in the Middle East requires 
an independent, sovereign, and viable State of 
Palestine living side by side with Israel in peace and security. 
We support the New York Declaration as a 
framework for tangible, time-bound and irreversible 
steps towards the two-State solution.  
My country stands ready to support every effort 
aimed at maintaining unhindered humanitarian 
assistance, protection of civilians and the recovery of Gaza. 
Kazakhstan calls for the full and good-faith 
implementation of the Comprehensive Plan to End 
the Gaza Conflict and Security Council resolution 2803.  
As a member of the Board of Peace, President 
Tokayev has committed to contribute to the stabilization 
of Gaza, by supporting civilian reconstruction, ensuring 
food security, and providing digital government solutions.  
Kazakhstan’s peacekeepers in UNDOF and 
UNIFIL reflect our readiness to assume practical 
responsibility and contribute to the internationally 
mandated stabilization forces in Gaza. 
Kazakhstan formally announced its intention to join 
the Abraham Accords. We see them as an additional 
platform to reinforce the UN-brokered political process towards a two-State solution. 
The long-term stability of Afghanistan remains 
inseparable from the security and sustainable 
development of Central Asia. Humanitarian assistance 
remains indispensable, but it cannot by itself break the 
cycle of poverty, displacement and dependency.  
Kazakhstan supports pragmatic, coordinated and 
step-by-step international engagement with 
Afghanistan, with the UN playing the central role.  
Finally, we have watched with growing concern in 
recent years the erosion of the protection of civilians in 
conflict zones.  In response, together with Brazil, China, 
France, Jordan, South Africa and the ICRC, 
Kazakhstan is advancing the Global Initiative to 
Galvanize Political Commitment to International Humanitarian Law. 
Mr President,  
The growing role of middle powers in global affairs 
is opening new avenues for practical cooperation to achieve SDGs.  
Kazakhstan is working with the United Nations to 
operationalize the United Nations Regional Centre 
for the Sustainable Development Goals for Central 
Asia and Afghanistan in Almaty. 
Its success should be measured by what it 
delivers. I thank my colleagues, the Foreign Ministers 
of Central Asia, for helping shape a practical and focused agenda for the Centre. 
Reaffirming our commitment to (Declaration of Alma
Ata and the Declaration of Astana) advancing primary 
health care as the cornerstone of universal health 
coverage, we call upon UN Member States to join the 
Global Coalition on Primary Health Care.  
2026 has been designated by this body as the 
International Year of Volunteers for Sustainable 
Development. This initiative, originally at President 
Tokayev’s suggestion, has given new impetus to 
volunteerism as a force for stronger communities, youth 
engagement, and environmental action. 
In Kazakhstan and elsewhere, hundreds of 
thousands of people have joined volunteer activities. 
Excellencies, 
Environmental challenges are among the 
defining issues of our time. Climate change, 
biodiversity loss, land degradation and the growing 
frequency of natural disasters are placing increasing 
pressure on our societies and economies. 
The Regional Ecological Summit, held in Astana 
in April, reaffirmed that climate, water, food and health 
challenges cannot be addressed in isolation.  
Its declaration «Environmental Solidarity of 
Central Asia», provides a strong foundation for 
advancing regional cooperation on environmental 
protection and sustainable development. 
On the same day, the Heads of State of the 
founding countries of the International Fund for Saving 
the Aral Sea (IFAS) declared an International Day of 
the Aral Sea and the Amu Darya and Syr Darya 
rivers, with the aim of raising global awareness of the 
region’s environmental challenges and mobilizing 
greater international support for their preservation. 
We are grateful for the support of UN Member 
States and partners for President Tokayev’s proposal 
to proclaim 22 April as the International Day of 
Greening of the Planet, aimed at amplifying global 
efforts to restore ecosystems.   Kazakhstan a human-centered pursues 
approach to contemporary challenges, emphasizing 
peacebuilding, dialogue, and cooperation as an 
essential response to the complex global challenges of our time. 
This approach is underpinned by a broader mental 
shift towards environmental stewardship, civic 
engagement, and care for the public good.  
It is reflected in nationwide efforts to improve public 
spaces, advance large-scale greening, and promote 
the values of respect for the rule of law, active and 
responsible patriotism, volunteerism, and compassion 
as integral elements of everyday life and civic culture.  
This brings us to another critical topic of our 
days. Healthy ecosystems depend on water. Water 
security is fundamental to the well-being and resilience of our societies.  
Water under pins public health, food and energy 
security, climate resilience and peace. Yet, despite 
its fundamental importance, global water governance remains fragmented. 
The recent devastating floods in the mountainous 
regions of Nepal and China remind us of the growing 
risks associated with water- and climate-related disasters.  
In this context, President Tokayev has proposed 
the establishment of an International Water 
Organization under the auspices of the United 
Nations. The purpose is to make international water 
governance more coherent, accountable and 
capable of effective implementation. 
Kazakhstan calls for an inclusive, Member State
led process to explore options for strengthening the 
institutional architecture for water within the United Nations.  
We will continue to advance this discussion in the 
lead-up to the 2026 United Nations Water Conference in Abu Dhabi. 
Kazakhstan stands ready to work with all Member 
States and partners to advance this common agenda. 
Distinguished Delegates, 
Artificial intelligence and rapid technological 
change present another area where urgent 
international cooperation is needed.  
At home, we are investing in computing capacity, 
digital infrastructure and AI skills.  We are forging new 
trusted partnerships on AI governance and emerging 
technologies. And we have recently adopted a Law on 
Artificial Intelligence and a new Digital Code.  
But without effective governance at all levels, it will 
also deepen inequality, create new security risks – as 
we have seen very recently – and widen the digital divide.  
We also should not let ethical norms fall behind this 
rapid evolution. AI must remain human-centered, safe 
and subject to meaningful human oversight. 
These risks are particularly serious in the military 
domain, where the use of AI in warfare and cyber 
operations could have far-reaching consequences for international stability. 
Kazakhstan supports stronger international rules 
and cooperation, including through the United Nations 
Global Mechanism on ICT Security and UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance. 
At the regional level, we invite partners to engage 
with the UN ESCAP Asia-Pacific Digital Solutions 
Centre in Almaty as a platform for sharing expertise 
and advancing regional digital cooperation. 
Ladies and Gentlemen, 
One thing is clear: there is a global trust deficit.  
Restoring trust will take time. But greater trust will not 
just appear like magic, it is the result of increased, not 
decreased, international cooperation. We must build it. 
That system of international cooperation we call 
multilateralism, in whose famous hall we stand today, 
depends on us, just as we depend on it.  True, the 
institutions of multilateralism must deliver tangible 
benefits, but equally true, we the member states must 
honor our commitments, adhere to global standards, and work together. 
Kazakhstan will remain a reliable partner for peace, 
security and sustainable development. We will continue 
to choose cooperation over confrontation and work with 
all Member States to strengthen the United Nations and 
turn our shared commitments into meaningful action. 
I thank you.