Tariq Saeedi
Ashgabat, 6 December 2012 (nCa) — Agenda and tradition brought them to Ashgabat for the summit but the question uppermost in everyone’s mind was: How does Putin walk?
The question was answered when instead of a usually bouncy Putin a limping Putin emerged from the car at about 14:30, some thirty minutes late for the summit that was supposed to start at 14:00.
Putin, whose ability to endure pain is higher than most, was obviously aching as he walked a bendy walk from the car to the conference hall. The moment he sat down, he was the same old Putin all over again.
By putting Putin at the core of this report we would like to emphasize that it was more than a usual CIS summit.
There was sharp focus on economic integration and law enforcement cooperation. Eleven of the 20 documents signed during the summit relate to economic integration, law enforcement and defence. Please see complete list at the end of this report. The documents that relate to economic, law enforcement and defence cooperation have been highlighted.
An important document is “Decision on activity of Inter-parliamentary Assembly of CIS countries on strengthening of integration interaction on CIS space.”
Ms. Valentina Matviyenko, formerly the governor of St. Petersburg (Russian Federation) and currently the Chairman of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation (equivalent to chairman senate in some countries) gave a special briefing to the summit in her capacity as the chairperson of the CIS inter-parliamentary council.
The main point in her briefing was that the CIS inter-parliamentary council has the capacity to monitor elections in the CIS space.
This is a direct attempt to role back OSCE involvement in election observation.
In fact, Putin was quite frank in his remarks when he said that OSCE should stop serving the interests of a select group of nations. He called for joint stand on this, expressing hope that during the chairmanship of OSCE by Ukraine in 2013, the organization would be able to focus more on the ‘joint agenda.’
While Putin was advocating economic integration in Ashgabat, Medvedev was doing the same thing in Bishkek. In the heads of government summit of SCO, Medvedev, together with the Chinese leadership, called for early creation of the SCO Development Fund and the SCO Development Bank.
Three of the eleven presidents of the member states did not attend the summit. President Almazbek Atambaev of Kyrgyzstan stayed away because of the ‘busy work schedule’ if we are to believe the statement of the Kyrgyz foreign office. This could be so because the SCO heads of government summit was taking place the same day in Bishkek. However, there were speculations that he did not attend the Ashgabat summit because of his anger at President Lukashenko of Belarus who had granted asylum to the ex-president of Kyrgyzstan, Kurmanbek Bakiyev and his son.
The Moldovan and Azeri presidents also sent their prime ministers. Both of them declined to attend the summit for different reasons.
The declaration of the Ashgabat summit (item 20 in the list at the end of this report) calls for creation of international transport-communication corridors, broader energy and technology partnership, growth of inter-CIS export volumes, mutual investment projects and other activities related to flexible integration.
The declaration also envisages CIS as an instrument for preventing and settling conflicts, enlarging the CIS role in preventive diplomacy.
The CIS chair passes from Turkmenistan to Belarus. The next summit of the heads of state will take place in Minsk in October 2013.
Sergei Lebedev has been elected for another four years as executive secretary of CIS. His tenure will end in December 2016.
Documents signed during the CIS Summit
1. Decision on Celebration of 70th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War (WWII) on 1941-1945
Signed by all summit participants
2. Decision on activity of Inter-parliamentary Assembly of CIS countries on strengthening of integration interaction on CIS space
Signed by all summit participants
3. Decision on Interstate Program ‘Cultural capitals of CIS’
Signed by all summit participants
4. Decision on announcement of 2013 – CIS year of ecological culture and environmental protection
5. Decision on Chairman of Economic Court of CIS
Signed by all summit participants
6. Cooperation agreement on creation of an integrated currency market in CIS space
Signed by all summit participants
7. Decision on holding activities for fulfillment of decision, made during CIS summit on 20 December 2011, on determination of communication and Informatization as the key point of economic interaction between CIS countries in 2012
Signed by all summit participants
8. Agreement on creation of council of financial intelligence agencies of CIS states
Signed by all summit participants
9. Agreement on cooperation in anti-terrorism units at the military and law enforcement educational establishments of CIS states
Signed by all summit participants
10. Agreement on cooperation in combating terrorism and violent manifestations of extremism, including cooperation in technical equipment in anti-terrorism and anti-extremism activities
Signed by all summit participants
11. Decision on development of united CIS air defence system
Signed by all summit participants
12. Decision on activities plan in frames of Regulations on assistance cooperation between CIS border agencies in the case of settlement of crisis at external borders, approved on 5 October 2007
Signed by all summit participants
13. Decision on Chief of CIS Antiterrorist Center
Signed by all summit participants
14. Decision on Chairman of Coordinating Board on air defence at CIS Ministers of defence Council
Signed by all summit participants
15. Protocol decisions
Signed by G.Berdymuhamedov
15.1 Protocol decision on awarding Armenia with CIS diploma (letter of commendation)
15.2 Protocol decision on awarding Belarus with CIS diploma
15.3 Protocol decision on awarding Ukraine with CIS diploma
15.4 Protocol decision on awarding CIS Economic Court with CIS diploma
16. Decision on Chairmanship in CIS
Signed by all summit participants
17. Protocol decision on holding regular CIS heads of states summit
Signed by G.Berdymuhamedov
18. Decision on Chairman of Executive committee – CIS Executive secretary
Signed by all summit participants
19. Decision on realization of interstate program ‘Cultural Capitals of CIS’ in 2013 in Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus
Signed by all summit participants
20. Declaration of the CIS countries for development of further cooperation
Signed by all summit participants
To be continued …