The event, chaired by the President of Uzbekistan, was attended by the President of Türkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Chairman of the Halk Maslakhaty of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov, Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban, OTS Secretary General Kubanychbek Omuraliev and other representatives of the institutions and structures of the Organization.
In accordance with the agenda, the prospects for the development of multilateral cooperation in emergency management and humanitarian assistance, as well as coordination of efforts in the prevention and overcoming of the consequences of natural disasters were discussed.
At the beginning of the summit, the participants commemorated the victims of the devastating earthquake that occurred on February 6 in the southwestern regions of Türkiye.
In his speech, the President of Uzbekistan emphasized that today’s meeting and the solidarity shown by the Organization countries with Türkiye in the most difficult times became a clear, practical confirmation of the strength of friendship and solidarity of the Turkic peoples, who are strong support for each other in the most difficult moments.
“The unprecedented and disastrous earthquake that shattered the land of our friends caused deep grief and sorrow in our hearts. Nothing can fill this loss, as this horrible disaster took the lives and injured our beloved parents, brothers, sisters, and children”, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said. – The memories of tens of thousands of innocent people who fell victim to this horrible tragedy will always be with us.
The Leader of Uzbekistan suggested announcing February 6 as the Day of Remembrance of Victims and Solidarity within the Organization of Turkic States to honor the blessed memory of all untimely deceased.
Highly appraising the measures implemented under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the programs adopted to eliminate the consequences of a natural disaster, the President of Uzbekistan emphasized that thanks to swift and efficient response, the lives and health of many people have been saved, large amounts of funds have been accumulated to start massive restoration work.
“In these challenging days the brotherly Turkish people with their unique bravery and courage, the firm will and great spirit are mobilizing around the Leader of Türkiye”, the President of Uzbekistan emphasized.
In this regard, the readiness of Uzbekistan was declared to help and direct joint efforts to restore and rebuild the destroyed cities and villages, social and industrial facilities.
“In addition, we will create all the necessary conditions for the recuperation and recreation of the elderly people from disaster-hit areas and perform pilgrimage to the mausoleums of our great ancestors such as Imam Bukhari, Imam Termizi, Imam Moturidi, Bahouddin Naqshband”, Shavkat Mirziyoyev suggested.
The President also invited the youth from Hatay province to Uzbekistan this summer, where recreational activities and trips to ancient Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva cities and joint events with their peers will be organized.
President Shavkat Mirziyoyev drew attention to the fact that in terms of geographic location and geological features, the territories of the Organization’s member-states are considered to be a zone, where natural hazards and disasters are common.
“Unfortunately, in recent years global climate change is increasing the scope and damage of these disasters”, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.
It was suggested to set up a systemic Cooperation Platform of the Organization to prevent and mitigate the consequences of emergencies and create several specific mechanisms.
Thus, it is very important to develop as soon as possible a Multilateral Agreement on the prevention of natural disasters and emergencies. In this regard, Uzbekistan supported the draft document submitted by the Turkish side on setting up a civil defense system.
The need was noted for sharply activating the partnership between ministries and agencies for emergencies. It was proposed to develop a Joint Action Program on priority areas during their next meeting.
The expediency of creating mechanisms for close interaction and support to address social and economic problems in times of such unexpected disasters was noted. It was proposed to ensure the unhindered supply of food and construction materials, launch cooperation projects to restore the industrial base.
“Despite the achievements of modern science and technology, predicting and early warning of earthquakes, floods and mudslides, wildfires and hurricanes remains an urgent task. Undoubtedly, deep research of these processes, broad use of science and technology can give significant positive results”, the Leader of Uzbekistan noted.
In this regard, he put forward an initiative to set up in Tashkent the Center for Monitoring and Analysis of Natural Disasters under the Organization of Turkic States.
In addition, the main attention was paid to the need for strengthening practical cooperation with international structures specializing in emergencies.
In conclusion, the President of Uzbekistan sincerely wished for the successful holding of important political events at a high level, in particular, elections in several countries of the Organization, and congratulated on the upcoming holiday of spring and renewal – Navruz and the month of Ramadan.
Following the summit, the Ankara Declaration was adopted. An agreement was signed on the establishment of the Turkic Investment Fund. A decision was made to prepare an agreement on the formation of a civil protection mechanism.
