A little time has passed since the time when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan created KazAID (Kazakhstan International Development Agency). There was a wave of discussions on social networks and the media, so one can seriously discuss what it is and how it will work.
The results of the Second Consultative Meeting of the Heads of States of Central Asia, held on November 29 in Tashkent, can literally be considered a victory for Kazakhstan's approaches to regional cooperation. A direct evidence of this was the election of Nursultan Nazarbayev as the honorary chairman of the forum.
But more importantly, the positions of all Central Asian states without exception on the widest range of issues — security, trade, transport infrastructure, ecology, culture and education — began to align along the lines of regional cooperation.
La politique étrangère du Kazakhstan a toujours eu pour objectif de créer des conditions extérieures favorables à un développement socio-économique durable du pays. Ses priorités ont toujours été le développement de la coopération économique avec les pays voisins, la diversification de ses exportations, l'attraction des investissements étrangers et l'ouverture de nouveaux marchés pour les marchandises kazakhes.
At one time, Henry Kissinger asked the question: «Who should I call to talk to Europe?» The lack of an answer to this question indicated the absence of a decision-making center in the European Union.
If today someone asks the same question about Central Asia, he will not receive an answer either. There is no one to speak on behalf of the region today.
À un moment donné, Henry Kissinger a posé la question: «Qui dois-je appeler pour parler à l'Europe?» L'absence de réponse à cette question indique l'absence de centre de décision dans l'Union européenne.
Si aujourd'hui quelqu'un pose la même question sur l'Asie centrale, il ne recevra pas non plus de réponse. Il n'y a personne pour parler au nom de la région aujourd'hui.
The foreign policy of Kazakhstan has always been aimed at creating favorable external conditions for sustainable socio-economic development of the country. Its constant priorities were the development of economic cooperation with neighbors in the region, diversification of export routes, attracting foreign investment and opening new markets for Kazakhstani goods.
Winston Churchill a dit un jour : « Les Généraux se préparent toujours pour la dernière guerre ». Et Martin White son compatriote et politologue d’ajouter : « Et les organisations internationales ont toujours été créées pour tirer des leçons de la guerre précédente ». Il est probable que le système international commence à se préparer bientôt pour éviter une future pandémie comme celle du coronavirus. Et le vaccin pour le COVID-19 fera sans doute son apparition quand le virus aura muté pour ne devenir qu’une infection respiratoire saisonnière.
Winston Churchill once said: «Generals are always preparing for the last war.» His compatriot political scientist Martin White added: «And international organizations are always created to prevent the past war.» It is likely that the international system will soon begin to prepare for coronavirus pandemic prevention. And the vaccine for COVID-19 will appear when it mutates to the level of seasonal SARS.
Over the years of independence, Kazakhstan has initiated and participated in the creation of a number of international organizations, but none of them, perhaps, has caused such contradictory assessments as the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). The idea was originally proposed by Nursultan Nazarbayev in May 1994. Two years later, an Agreement was signed between Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Russia on deepening integration in the economic and humanitarian fields (Tajikistan then later joined the alliance of the four). An Integration Committee was created, headed by the First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Nigmatzhan Isingarin.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, having become the President of Kazakhstan after a landslide election victory a year ago, and recently returned from Moscow, where at the invitation of President Vladimir Putin he participated in a parade to mark the 75th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, gave an interview to the popular newspaper Ana Tili (Native language).
The interview reflected a wide range of issues of global and internal political nature, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the modern system of international relations and country governance, reforming the political, economic and social spheres, as well as the role of the state language, cultural code and philosophical views of the Kazakh people and their relationship with current trends in world development.
Nowadays, the old ideology, which was vigorously discussed by the public opinion of the country one and a half decades ago, has already been partially forgotten. It is about the enlightened authoritarianism, which was first mentioned by, if my memory serves right, French politician and political analyst Alex Moskovich, the external adviser of Nursultan Nazarbaev. At the time critics condemned authoritarianism, but the second part of the equation, without which it did not hold a meaning, was left outside of the discussion.
The strategic Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China has a truly global significance and far-reaching geopolitical implications. «Belt» is the «Economic Silk Road» that links China with the Eurasian continent, Africa and the Middle East by the road, railway lines and fiber-optic communication lines by land, while «Road» is «21st Century Maritime Silk Road» that links China with distant markets and raw materials of the area between Arctic and Indian, Pacific and Atlantic oceans by water.