Turkmenistan offers to host int'l meetings on disarmament, energy, refugees
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E-mail Xinhua, October 1, 2013
Turkmenistan on Monday proposed hosting five international meetings next year -- on disarmament, energy security, cooperative transport and transit corridors for landlocked countries, desertification, and refugees, while calling for an expanded United Nations' role in the world.
"It is precisely the United Nations that is the main and universal international organization which adopts decisions concerning the most important issues of global development and comprehensive peace and security," Turkmenistan's Deputy Prime Minister Rashid Meredov said.
Meredov made the remarks while speaking at the annual high- level debate of the UN General Assembly, which entered its sixth day here Monday.
"Turkmenistan stands for the strengthening and expanding the role of the United Nations in the world," he said, citing " constructive and omnilateral cooperation" with the UN as the top priority of his country's foreign policy.
On disarmament, he called for a high-level international meeting. "We are prepared to create all necessary conditions and provide appropriate infrastructure for holding this meeting in the capital of our country (Ashgabat)," he said.
With regard to energy, Meredov said ensuring security in this sphere is "one of the most important components of stable world economy, its protection against distortions and disruptions," and proposed the establishment of a new UN "universal international law tool kit" to form the legal basis for the international supplies of energy resource with a corresponding UN structure to enforce implementation of these provisions.
"To this end the government of Turkmenistan proposes to convene in 2014 an International Meeting of Experts devoted to this topic, " said Meredov, who made similar proposals at last year's annual General Debate, citing the fact that Turkmenistan is one of the leading suppliers of energy resources and possesses the world's fourth largest reserves of hydrocarbon resources.
On transportation, he called for a combined system involving major international and regional maritime, road, railroad and air hubs.
"Turkmenistan is convinced that transport architecture of the 21st century is the architecture for an integration breakthrough, joint efforts of regions, and combination of resources and industrial and human potentials," he said.
"Turkmenistan would like to table a proposal on holding next year in Ashgabat an International Conference dedicated to the role of transport and transit corridors in ensuring international cooperation, stability and sustainable development," he added.
On climate change, Meredov offered his country as a venue for a Conference of States Parties to the UN Convention on Combating Desertification.
Finally, citing his country's "practical work in granting citizenship to refugees and stateless persons," he proposed hosting a high-level event with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to develop long-term solutions on the issue.
In a related development, ministers of landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) met on the margins of the General Debate to review progress in the Almaty Program of Action, a framework adopted in the Kazakh city in 2003 setting out specific measures for improved market access and trade facilitation to compensate LLDCs for their geographical handicaps.
"LLDCs continue to face many challenges," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in remarks to the meeting. "These include constraints in reaching global markets, significant financing gaps and the need to improve trade facilitation and integration into the world economy.
"The economies of landlocked developing countries remain fragile and vulnerable to external shocks such as the global economic crisis and climate change," Ban said, calling for a new global partnership for development, involving LLDCs, transit developing countries, and development partners including international organizations, the private sector and academia. Endi
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