OSCE eager to pursue fruitful co-operation with Kazakh authorities, says Chairman-in-Office

ALMATY, 31 October 2002 - Completing a two-day visit to Kazakhstan, OSCE's Chairman-in-Office (CiO), Portuguese Foreign Minister, Antonio Martins da Cruz stressed the importance of the OSCE's co-operation with Kazakhstan.

"We want to deepen our co-operation with Kazakhstan in all the three dimensions of security and I believe this will be useful for both sides," he said in the capital, Astana, yesterday.

After meeting President Nursultan Nazarbaev, the CiO also emphasized the importance the OSCE attributes to combating terrorism. "This is a global threat that should be addressed in a global way" he added.

During talks with Foreign Minister Kassymzhomart Tokaev, the Speaker of the Majilis (Parliament), Zharmakhan Tuyakbai, and the Chairman of the Senate, Oralbai Abdykarimov, both sides stressed that the OSCE should focus more on strengthening regional security, addressing environmental challenges, while maintaining its activities in the third dimension of security; i.e. respect for human rights, freedom of expression and institution-building.

Foreign Minister da Cruz also met representatives of Kazakh civil society, before leaving the country for Uzbekistan on the next stage of his trip to three Central Asian participating States of the OSCE.