Members of the UN Security Council approved the program of Kazakhstan’s chairmanship
NEW YORK, January 2, 2018 – On the first working day of Kazakhstan’s chairmanship in the UN Security Council, a presentation of the Security Council’s activity program for January was held. In the morning, a working breakfast of the permanent representatives of the SC member countries was held at the Permanent Mission of Kazakhstan, during which key points of the work plan were discussed.
The diplomats noted the qualitative elaboration of the program by Kazakhstan’s chairmanship. In particular, the Permanent Representative of Russia to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzia, stressed that “knowing Kazakhstan perfectly as no other member of the Council”, taking into account the historical factor and traditionally close relations, the Russian side “is confident in the success of the work of the Kazakh delegation as the Chairman of the Council”. The Russian diplomat announced the participation of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a high-level SB briefing with the participation of the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev on the topic “Non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction: confidence-building measures” on January 18. US Ambassador Nicky Hailey and other ambassadors of the member countries of the Council noted the substantial and rich program of Kazakhstan in January with a focus on pressing issues of non-proliferation through confidence-building measures and the inclusion of the ministerial-level debates on Central Asia and Afghanistan on the agenda of the SC.
On the same day, on the initiative of Kazakhstan, for the first time in the history of the United Nations, a solemn ceremony was held to raise the flags of the newly elected six non-permanent members of the UN Security Council – Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Peru and Poland. The event was attended by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Ricardo Luna. The ceremony was attended by a large number of representatives of the member countries of the Security Council and the UN, the international press, UN agencies and NGOs. In the opinion of many delegations, the event became a vivid “visiting card” of the beginning of the Kazakh presidency, launching a new tradition in the UN. Not only is the novelty of this step noted, but also its deep symbolism, emphasizing the high responsibility of the new members of the Council to the world community, which entrusted them with the solution of international problems of peace and security. The initiative is already being considered as an element of the legacy of Kazakhstan’s chairmanship in the UN Security Council. Thus, the Permanent Representative of Equatorial Guinea said that his delegation would consolidate the tradition and repeat the ceremony during its presidency in the Security Council – in January next year.
Officially, the January program of work of the Council was approved at a meeting of the Security Council members, after which it was already presented to the attention of the UN member states within the framework of a separate briefing by the Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan, Kairat Umarov. The delegations participating in the meeting congratulated Kazakhstan on assuming the office of the Security Council Chairman and wished successes in the forthcoming work. A number of countries (Morocco, Chile, Colombia, Tajikistan) noted the urgency of the key issues selected by the Kazakh side in the framework of the chairmanship of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the building of a regional partnership in Afghanistan and Central Asia as a model for the interdependence of security and development. The Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan answered the numerous questions of the member countries on the program of work under the Kazakhstan Chairmanship.
During the traditional press conference, the Ambassador of the presiding country K.Umarov acquainted the journalists accredited to the United Nations with the key priorities of the Kazakhstan’s chairmanship, as well as the program of work of the Council for January. Special attention of representatives of the international press was focused on the holding by Kazakhstan of a high-level event in the field of non-proliferation through confidence-building measures with the participation of President N.Nazarbayev, the situation around North Korea, Iran, Palestine and the status of Jerusalem, Myanmar. A number of issues touched upon the problems of Syria, the humanitarian situation in Yemen, climate change and the promotion of initiatives and developments in the field of “green technologies” by Kazakhstan. Correspondents of the world’s leading publications – Al-Arabiya, Huffington Post, Associated Press, Agence France Press, CBS, FOX News, Nikkei, Mainichi, Fiji TV, Tokyo Shimbun, NHK and others – were given detailed answers describing Kazakhstan’s position on major international issues in the light of the initiatives of the Head of State.
In general, the first working day of Kazakhstan’s chairmanship in the UN Security Council was productive and reaffirmed the respect and high international prestige of Kazakhstan and President N.Nazarbayev.
Press-service
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Republic of Kazakhstan