Kyrgyzstan, 2014

First of all, allow me to congratulate you, Sir, on your

election as President of the General Assembly at its

sixty-ninth session and to wish you every success

in carrying out that important task. It is also a great

pleasure to express my gratitude to Mr. John Ashe for

his successful and fruitful guidance of the previous

session of the General Assembly.

The current situation in the world vividly

demonstrates that the ongoing instability, increasing

disputes among the leading world Powers and the absence

of a clear and comprehensible vision for the future of the

world order have become part of our everyday life. War,

conflict, a refusal to listen to one another and unilateral

action are pushing the international community ever

closer to the precipice. Such developments undermine

our efforts to work together effectively to address

today’s threats and challenges. It is no surprise that

various terrorist and extremist groups are cunningly

taking advantage of the prevailing political vacuum and

fierce opposition among world and regional Powers in

order not only to insinuate and assert their presence, but

also to demonstrate their ability to directly influence

the situation around the world.

Therefore, the role of the United Nations as a

platform for comprehensive dialogue is becoming ever

more important. Kyrgyzstan has consistently advocated

the further strengthening of the central coordinating

role of the United Nations in international affairs so

as to maintain peace, security and stability; to promote

shared sustainable and constructive development; and

to encourage broad international cooperation. We

believe that the ongoing and emerging sources of global

instability require a strengthened role for the United

Nations in every possible way. The relevance of political

and diplomatic conflict resolution is reconfirmed by

the situations in Afghanistan, the Sahel, East and West

Africa, Ukraine and Syria. In order to overcome the

threats and challenges to peace, prosperity and creative

development, we should firmly and resolutely move

forward by uniting the efforts of the entire international

community. Kyrgyzstan expresses its full readiness

to participate in such constructive and effective

international cooperation.

Against the backdrop of such negative global

political developments, the further strengthening of

human rights principles and of the rule of law, based on

constructive approaches and cooperation, is becoming

all the more relevant. For Kyrgyzstan, these principles

are an integral part of political development. The

upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections in

Kyrgyzstan, in 2015 and 2017, will serve as an important

step in strengthening the democratic foundations of our

country. We hope that the international community

will provide effective assistance to Kyrgyzstan in

implementing its far-reaching goals. In line with our

commitment to democratic principles and the desire to

make a further contribution to the dialogue on global

democracy, Kyrgyzstan has announced its candidacy

for the Human Rights Council for the period of 2016-

2018. We count on the support of members of the

Assembly in that regard.

The world today is at a difficult juncture, marked

by increasing regional and international instability. All

nations, regardless of their geographical location, face

similar security challenges. Our region, in this regard,

is no exception. It is obvious that the most serious

external challenge to Central Asia remains the situation

in Afghanistan, as well as the threats of terrorism,

extremism and drug trafficking emanating from that

country.

As in the past, problems related to illegal drug-

trafficking as a direct consequence of the situation in

Afghanistan are among the most severe in the entire

region. We are especially alarmed by the continuing

strong link between terrorism and illegal Afghan drugs,

which undermine the achievements in Afghanistan’s

security situation and its ability to ensure law and order

throughout the country. In this regard, it is necessary

to pool efforts with the United Nations to promote

security and stability in Afghanistan.

In order to effectively curb these threats, we call

for a more proactive international contribution, in order

to strengthen the capacity of regional law-enforcement

agencies and to promote regional cooperation. We

attach particular importance to the Istanbul Process

as an important dialogue in improving regional

cooperation on Afghan issues. We count on the active

participation of all parties in achieving practical

results. We hope that the establishment of the new

Government of Afghanistan by Mr. Ashraf Ghani and

Mr. Abdullah Abdullah will be the starting point for the

future stabilization in that war-weary country.

Another important factor for regional instability

is the unresolved border issue in Central Asia.

Undoubtedly, a successful solution is in the best

interests of all States of the region. The solution would

greatly contribute to enhancing the regional transit

potential of our countries, developing cross-border

infrastructure, improving the economic situation and

decreasing social tension. In this regard, I call on all

Central Asian States to support the recent initiative of

the President of Kyrgyzstan, Mr. Almazbek Atambaev,

on the development and subsequent signing of bilateral

agreements on border-related confidence-building, as

put forward at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation

Organization held in Dushanbe. I am confident that

the successful implementation of that initiative would

let us take historic steps towards the development of

regional economic and trade relations, as well as in

jointly maintaining regional stability.

Amid the turmoil sweeping through the Middle

East, it is especially important to focus our attention

on the issue of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process,

which we view as the major destabilizing factor for the

region and the world. The use of force leads only to

further bloodshed, destruction and hatred and does not

solve any problem. In order to revive mutual trust, the

conflict must be resolved by exclusively political and

diplomatic means, on the basis of relevant resolutions

of the Security Council.

The theme of the present general debate, “Delivering

on and implementing a transformative post-2015

development agenda”, is both timely and relevant. Next

year, at the seventieth anniversary session of the United

Nations, we will need to formulate and adopt new goals

for the following 15 years. The evolving situation today

illustrates that many countries, including Kyrgyzstan,

are unlikely to achieve all the objectives proposed in

the Millennium Declaration (resolution 55/2) and the

Millennium Development Goals in the next year. We

believe that the goals not achieved should be refined

in the light of gained experience and they should find

proper reflection in the post-2015 goals for sustainable

development.

We advocate including countries with special

development needs on the agenda of the post-2015

agenda. Kyrgyzstan falls into such a category. Ours

is a developing, landlocked and mountainous State

that is highly vulnerable to climate change. It is well

known that extreme poverty in Kyrgyzstan has many

causes, foremost among them a disadvantageous

geographical location. More than 70 per cent of our

territory is mountainous. The country lies 5,000

metres above sea level, with approximately one third

of its total area lying 400 metres above sea level. Such

States are characterized by remoteness, inaccessibility,

informational isolation, severe geoclimatic conditions

and a high cost of living.

For Kyrgyzstan, the absence of access to the sea

is yet another factor having a restrictive effect on

our economic development. Remoteness from major

international transport networks and high transportation

costs hinder the development of multi-vector and

diversified international economic relations and the

implementation of the country’s large-scale investment

projects. We believe that the establishment of an

international development fund to provide support and

assistance for the economies of developing landlocked

countries would contribute to their sustainable

economic development. This is especially important

in the run-up to the second United Nations Conference

on Landlocked Developing Countries, to be held in

Vienna, where a new programme of action for the next

decade should be adopted.

The year 2015 will be a milestone for the entire

world community. In addition to the adoption of the

post-2015 agenda, we anticipate the adoption of an

international legally binding instrument on climate

change. On 23 September, on the margins of the

General Assembly, the United Nations Summit on

Climate Change was held, at which States outlined

their vision for a solution incorporating adaptation to

and mitigation of climate change. For Kyrgyzstan, as

for all mountainous countries whose ecosystems are

highly sensitive to climate change, these issues are of

priority importance on the national agenda. Abruptly

melting glaciers, rising temperatures, soil degradation,

landslides, mudflows and floods cause significant

economic damage and serve as vivid reminders of

the vulnerability of mountain ecosystems. According

to reliable forecasts, Kyrgyzstan’s ice cover could be

reduced by 40 per cent by 2025, leading to a one third

drop in the water available in the region. In that regard,

conscious of the undoubted interconnections between

the environment, climate change and sustainable

development goals, we believe that it is essential that

the interests of vulnerable countries be adequately and

fairly reflected in future action at the global level.

Speaking of regional problems in Central Asia, I

should note that dealing as we are with global challenges

such as climate change, the potential threat of an

energy crisis and population growth, water resources

are a key factor in prosperity, and in that regard, our

basic position is that the issues of water resources and

energy are indissolubly linked and inseparable from

each other. It is crucial to understand that hydropower

development is an essential precondition for our

sustainable development. That is entirely consistent

with the Secretary-General’s initiative in declaring

the period between 2014 and 2024 the Decade of

Sustainable Energy for All. It is clear that access to

modern, affordable and environmentally friendly

energy supplies is essential if developing countries are

to achieve global development goals, including those

in the Millennium Declaration. The issue of affordable

energy should unquestionably be appropriately

reflected in the new world agenda of the United Nations

post-2015.

The recovery and secure storage of uranium tailings

in Kyrgyzstan remains a serious transboundary problem

for Central Asia. Most are concentrated in densely

populated areas, and their condition has deteriorated in

the last 10 years in the wake of closings of industrial

enterprises and major production facilities. Moreover,

a large part of these tailings are at risk of exposure to

landslides and floods, as they are located in seismically

active regions near the banks of Central Asia’s major

transboundary rivers. Despite my Government’s efforts

at the national level, along with the support of various

international programmes and projects, the serious

social, economic and environmental problems related

to these issues continue. I would therefore like to urge

the international community to assist Kyrgyzstan

in dealing with this problem of radioactive and toxic

waste through full rehabilitation of the contaminated

areas, as envisioned in resolution 68/218, on the role of

the international community in averting the radiation

threat in Central Asia.

In conclusion, I would like to emphasize that no

State can solve all the challenges it faces and maintain

sustainable development in isolation. We cannot

achieve our sustainable development goals and establish

global order without the consolidated efforts of the

international community. In that regard, I would like to

assure the Assembly that Kyrgyzstan, in its partnership

with the United Nations, stands ready to contribute to

the search for new opportunities to solve the complex

challenges of our time, as well as to contribute to

strengthening stability and peace in the world.