MINSK, 12 October (BelTA) – Belarus views interaction with Asian countries as a priority of its foreign policy, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei said as he addressed the 6th meeting of ministers of foreign affairs of the member states of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in Nur-Sultan on 12 October, BelTA has learned.
"Trade and economic ties with our partners in the Eurasian union are closely intertwined here. As a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, Belarus is interested in strengthening the collective security of the Central Asian region," the Belarusian Foreign Minister said.
He also noted: "We are substantively cooperating with partners in the SCO. We are ready to participate more actively in CICA events."
CICA's growing global role in developing cooperation in the Asian region, increasing the level of security and strengthening confidence-building measures between states was noted during the plenary session. The initiative to transform CICA into a full-fledged international organization while preserving the fundamental principles of its functioning was supported.
On the sidelines of the event, Vladimir Makei held a number of meetings, namely with counterparts of Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, the tourism minister of Israel, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Central Asia Natalia Gherman and others. The parties discussed bilateral cooperation, the international agenda, and mutual support in international organizations.
The Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia was established in 1992. The main objective of the CICA is to strengthen cooperation by developing multilateral approaches to ensuring peace, security and stability in Asia. The Conference brings together twenty seven countries. Nine countries (including the Republic of Belarus) and five international organizations have observer status.
