From PCFA to the present: continuity, pragmatism and a focus on success

April 13 marks the 76th anniversary of the adoption of the Law on the Formation of the Union-Republic People’s Commissariat for Foreign Affairs (PCFA) of the Kazakh SSR, which laid the foundation for the foreign policy of modern Kazakhstan.

There were fierce battles for the liberation of mankind from fascism during the Second World War and the prospects for a peaceful future for all states were quite unsteady when in one of the leading and largest republics of Central Asia - Kazakhstan - the process of institutionalizing a state body had begun, designed to ensure the independent development of its foreign policy and trade relations.

Since then, the world map has changed significantly, and Kazakhstan has become an independent state. Recently, the country adopted a new Foreign Policy Concept of the Republic of Kazakhstan for 2020-2030, approved by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. It highlights that: “Over the years of independence, our country has strengthened its position in the international arena, establishing itself as a peace-loving and open state, and a reliable partner in global and regional affairs. Kazakhstan implements a multi-vector, pragmatic and proactive foreign policy, making a significant contribution to the formation and implementation of the global and regional agenda in the fields of security, cooperation and development. At the same time, attention is paid to the comprehensive and unshakable upholding of national interests, the constructive promotion of foreign policy and foreign economic priorities.”

Noting the growth and achievements of the foreign policy of modern Kazakhstan, the contributions of the first Kazakh PCFA members is invariably emphasized: its leaders are Tulegen Tazhibayev, who was also deputy chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Republic; Malika Fazylova, who held the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kazakh SSR, and was also appointed the USSR Ambassador to Mali and Morocco; Balzhan Bultrikova, the first female Minister of Foreign Affairs, who represented the nation at the UN General Assembly. The congregation of outstanding personalities in Kazakhstan’s diplomacy also consists of Shaiken Nadirov, who worked as an adviser-envoy in Mongolia, Robert Turdiyev - adviser-envoy in Tunisia, Ibrahim Amangaliyev - in Iran, Algeria and Indonesia, Alim Dzhamburshin - in Canada, Salim Kurmangozhin – in Ethiopia, Nurlan Danenov - in Tunisia, D. Raimbekov - in Hungary, G. Rudenko - in Bulgaria, Tuleutay Suleimenov - in Iran, Tulegen Tazhibayev - in India, Bolatkhan Taizhan - in Yemen, B. Tymbaev - in Cuba, and A. Cherekayev - in Australia.

Their baton was picked up by such young diplomats as V. Gizzatov, R. Dzhienbayev, S. Yermekbayev, B. Nurgaliyev, and K. Sarsenov.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan is the foundation of the nation’s international relations, which had a significant role in shaping the most senior diplomat, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

Leading the country, President Tokayev announced the continuity of the foreign policy laid down by the First President, Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev, which reflects the goals and objectives enshrined in the Strategy for Long-Term and Sustainable Development until 2050, the “100 concrete steps to implement the five institutional reforms” Plan of the Nation, and the President’s Annual Addresses to the People of Kazakhstan.

Following this course allows the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan to continue to carry out its functions effectively despite the difficult current conditions of an unstable system of international relations, the impending international financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.

First of all, it is essential to ensure the safety of one’s own citizens, who find themselves in difficult situations outside of their own country. Thanks to the prompt actions of representatives of foreign missions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in collaboration with government bodies in the host countries and the Government of Kazakhstan, 9,667 people from more than 50 countries were returned to their homeland.

As the country prides itself of being a listening state, this area has become a priority amid the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nevertheless, this is only one of the areas of activity of the Foreign Ministry, and the achievement of strategic goals related primarily to strengthening the independence, state sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, maintaining the independence of its foreign policy, and other goals and objectives outlined in the Foreign Policy Concept of the Republic Kazakhstan for 2020-2030, are still ahead.

These tasks are complex, but the experience and continuity, at the core of the activities of Kazakhstan’s PCFA that has subsequently been transformed into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kazakh SSR, and then into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of independent Kazakhstan, give confidence that the country will successfully overcome such difficulties and problems.