Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend the Seventh Meeting of the Heads of State and Government Council of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), which will be held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, on October 15.
According to information obtained from Foreign Ministry sources, Fidan will attend the summit representing President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The meeting, held under Azerbaijan's term presidency, will bring together representatives from member states, observer countries, and CICA partner and observer international organizations.
The summit is expected to focus on the themes of "A Stronger CICA in Asia, Connectivity, Digitalization, and Sustainable Development," which Azerbaijan has highlighted during its term presidency. At the end of the meeting, the "Baku Declaration" and the "Statement on Cooperation in the Field of Occupational Safety and Health" are expected to be adopted, and Laos is expected to be announced as a new member.
FİDAN’S MESSAGES
Minister Fidan is scheduled to address the summit and hold numerous bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the event. In his speeches, Fidan is expected to emphasize the importance of producing common solutions based on consultation, consensus, mutual trust, and regional ownership in the face of global crises and geopolitical developments.
Fidan is also expected to bring up Turkey's stance on Gaza and draw attention to the urgency of ending the situation in the region due to Israel's attacks and the obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid. The Minister is expected to reiterate that the international community must increase pressure on Israel for a fair and lasting peace based on a two-state solution.
The meeting is also expected to address joint steps in the fields of economy, trade, digitalization, energy, connectivity, and technology. Fidan plans to emphasize the contribution of connectivity projects supported by Turkey, such as the Middle Corridor and the Development Road, to regional stability and prosperity.
The development of emerging technologies such as digital transformation and artificial intelligence within a human-centered, reliable, and digital sovereignty-respecting framework will also be among the summit's agenda items. Fidan is expected to point to the importance of political will and concrete steps in the fight against climate change and touch upon the role Turkey will undertake as the host and president of COP31.
CICA stands out as a structure that brings 28 countries in the Asian geography together on a common platform for dialogue. The organization covers 90 percent of the Asian continent in terms of surface area and more than half of the world's population. Turkey is among the founding members of CICA and contributes to the organization's work in various areas.
News Source: 12punto
