In 2018, Uzbekistan became the Central Asian State mostly focused by Western political scientists. It was resulted the events following the changing of power from President Islam Karimov to his successor Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who has initiated the massive inner reforms and new course for external policy.
Dear colleagues and guests! It is a great honor for the International scientific complex “Astana” to be one of the organizers of the conference today. First of all, I would like to thank the main organizers and co-organizers of the conference for bringing us together for this important event. I am pleased to present you the Concept of a long-term complex program of scientific and applied researches of sustainable development of the Kazakhstani sector of the Caspian sea and the coast within the Atyrau and Mangystau regions.
The long-term prospects for the development of the Caspian region mostly depend on geopolitical factors and the state of regional security. In this regard, it is important to pay attention to the fact that for many millennia the Caspian region has united ethnicities, civilizations and cultures. It is important to do everything possible to ensure that the tradition of dialogue continues to be a solid foundation for stable international relations in the region. The Caspian sea can and should become an example of more harmonious and fair relations between the countries in the XXI century.
On July 2, 2018, the International Scientific Complex Astana and International University of Astana hosted the first international scientific and practical conference “Economic belt of the Silk Road and topical issues of China-Kazakhstan interaction”. The Kazakhstani side was represented by the Security Council of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, deputies of the Mazhilis of the Parliament, Chairman of the Investment Committee of the Ministry of Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Director of the Department for Development of Transit and Transport Logistics of the Ministry of Investment and Development, Director of the Department of Asia and Africa Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as representatives of research institutes of ISC of Astana participated in the Conference.
The complicated geopolitical situation in the region, the military coup attempt, alongside with political instability challenged the Turkish economy in 2016. The slowdown in economic growth has resulted in a fall of tourist inflows and reduction in private and foreign investment.
The current decade for the Levant countries was marked by such powerful cataclysms as the «Arab Spring» and the merge of international terrorism with politicization of Islam. Both phenomena were the result of complex political, cultural and socio-economic processes that led to the global changes in the Middle East. The events of the «Arab spring» allowed terrorism to learn new forms and methods of adaptation to social changes, corresponding to the new processes in the region, which led to the formation of the international terrorist organization «Islamic State» («IS»).
After the attempted coup, the Turkish government continues the course of a more confident and assertive domestic and foreign policy, to which the international community reacts ambiguously. In particular, the active policy of R.T.Erdoğan causes concern among European powers that consider certain measures of state policy (mass arrests and purges) to be anti-democratic. Relations between the partners have deteriorated significantly, and the negotiations on EU accession have reached an impasse. Long years of negotiation processes and the efforts of the interested powers might prove in vain, as on the EU agenda is the reorientation of priorities, including a complete re-examination of relations with Turkey.
In recent years, many states are actively adopting “blockchain” technology, which is applicable in a wide range of spheres of life – from banking and business sector to health care, retirement systems, public administration, etc. In this connection, it is important that Kazakhstan did not fall out of global trends and developed this perspective technology in a timely manner, taking into account all its advantages and possible costs.
The IRA is of strategic importance for China, which plays a central role in the Afghan settlement by supporting political dialogue between Afghanistan and the Taliban. After the presentation of the newest American strategy for Afghanistan, China significantly intensified its positions by participating in various dialogues on the solution of the Afghan problem.
On October 5-8, 2017 King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for the first time visited the capital of Russia, thus moving relations between Moscow and Riyadh to a qualitatively new level [1]. The main event of the program of the Saudi King in Moscow was his meeting with the President of the Russian Federation V.Putin. In addition, King Salman held talks with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and visited MGIMO University, where he was conferred the title of Doctor Honoris Causa [2]. In the course of the visit, 14 documents were signed on cooperation in various fields – space exploration, energy, communications, trade, culture, etc. [3].
On November 1, 2017, the King of Jordan Abdullah II paid an official visit to Astana, where he was received by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, N.A.Nazarbayev. The heads of the two states discussed the priority areas of bilateral relations, current problems on the international and regional agenda, including recent developments in the Middle East. Following the meeting, a number of intergovernmental documents were signed, including an agreement on cooperation in the field of civil defense, combating international crime, disaster management and emergency response.
On November 1st 2017, Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Tehran on a working visit, where he met with Iranian President H.Rouhani [1]. Later, V.Putin and H.Rouhani were joined by the President of Azerbaijan I.Aliyev [2]. Parties discussed cooperation in trade, transport and energy, problems of combating terrorism, as well as issues related to the legal status of the Caspian Sea in the trilateral format [3]. Within the framework of the visit, V.Putin also met with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader and spiritual leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran [4].
In July-October 2017, the European Union took a number of important steps that could significantly enhance its capabilities in the field of cybersecurity. Firstly, it is a decision to establish a new Cybersecurity Agency in the European Union. Secondly, this is the holding of the first cyber-exercises in the history of the EU. Thirdly, it is the holding of an EU summit dedicated to the problems of the digital environment and the adoption of the «Tallinn Declaration» on e-government.
