NATO
Experts from five Central Asian states and Afghanistan gathered in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in March 2015 for a NATO-sponsored regional conference on “Peace and Stability in Central Asia and Afghanistan: A View from Neutral Turkmenistan.”
This high-level event, organized jointly by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan and the office of the NATO Liaison Officer in Central Asia, was unprecedented in the history of Turkmenistan’s partnership with the alliance.
It was the fourth in a series of NATO-sponsored events marking the 20th anniversary of the Partnership for Peace program in the Central Asian partner states. Moreover, it was included in Turkmenistan’s official program of events celebrating the “Year of Neutrality and Peace” on the 20th anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution recognizing the country’s neutrality.
Turkmenistan Deputy Foreign Minister Berdyniyaz Myatiev opened the event, while James Appathurai, the NATO secretary-general’s special representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia, addressed participants by video link from NATO headquarters.
Turkmen participants included officials and experts from a wide range of institutions, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Interior, the Prosecutor-General’s Office, the Institute of State and Law under the President of Turkmenistan, the Institute of International Relations and the International University of Humanities.
Experts from Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and the United States, and representatives of the United Nations Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia, the United Nations Development Programme, the European Union, and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe also spoke at the event.
Ambassador Sapar Berdyniyazov, special envoy of the Turkmen Ministry of Foreign Affairs underlined Ashgabat’s neutral status and transparent foreign and defense policies, saying that these have helped it gain the trust of its neighbors and help prevent and resolve conflicts. He also recalled Turkmenistan’s support for the stabilization of neighboring Afghanistan, both bilaterally and multilaterally, through the Heart of Asia/Istanbul Process.
Dr. Ulugbek Khasanov, associate professor at the University of World Economy and Diplomacy, Uzbekistan, stated that “we are all faced with nonstate threats, which no state in the region is able to deal with on its own.”
Dr. Kuralai Baizakova, professor at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Kazakhstan, noted that “the degree of importance of common threats is perceived differently by different Central Asian states.” She advocated the development of new regional mechanisms, for instance, on sharing water resources, which could become a factor for rapprochement in Central Asia.
Elnura Omurkulova-Ozierska, researcher at the National Strategic Studies Institute, Kyrgyz Republic, highlighted the increasing threat to Central Asian security posed by radicalization, while warning that harsh counterterrorism policies adopted by some countries can be counterproductive.
Haroun Mir, director of the Centre for Research and Policy Studies in Afghanistan, praised the international community’s enormous contribution to Afghanistan. Although he saw 2015 as a major test of the ability of the Afghan National Security Forces to ensure security throughout the country, he also highlighted a window of opportunity for national reconciliation, expressing the hope that 2015 would witness a breakthrough in the Afghan peace process.
Participants also exchanged views about the threat posed by radicalization and the terrorist group Da’ish; bilateral border and energy-related tensions among Central Asian states; the narcotics problem and the importance of tackling it effectively; and other security-related topics.