Attending the summit were Vladimir Putin, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues.
Before we start working, unfortunately, I have to say a few words about a tragedy that happened in Aktau today. People have been killed in an air crash, and many more have been injured. As we have just noted, I would like, on your behalf, to offer condolences to the families of the deceased and to all the injured. We will hope that they recover.
By agreement with the President of Kazakhstan, an aircraft of the Russian Ministry for Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Relief will deliver medical personnel and the required additional equipment to Aktau. In the morning, I spoke with Mr Ilham Aliyev who had virtually arrived but was forced to turn around and go back to Baku, bearing in mind that the aircraft belonged to an Azerbaijani air company.
I repeat, we will hope for a speedy recovery of those injured in the crash, and, of course, I am confident that a thorough investigation will be conducted. We will coordinate the work of our special aviation services on all issues linked with this tragedy.
At the same time, I would like to thank you once again for gathering here today in the Leningrad Region at the end of the year to discuss our joint achievements in the work of CIS countries and to see what we can do in the near future.
Over the past year, Russia focused its efforts as part of its CIS chairmanship on promoting Eurasian integration, consolidating the international standing of the CIS, as well as enabling its executive bodies to be effective in their work. We made forging deeper economic ties our priority, while also seeking to ensure the free movement of goods, services, as well as remove trade barriers and streamline customs clearance procedures.
In this context, let me note that Russia’s trade with CIS member nations increased by 10.6 percent in the first ten months and slightly exceeded $93 billion. Our countries have greatly improved their macroeconomic performance. The aggregate GDP for the CIS is expected to increase by 4.7 percent in 2024, which places the CIS above the global average. Industrial output increased by 4.3 percent in the first ten months. Cargo shipments were up by 7.4 percent, while retail trade surged by 7.7 percent.
CIS countries have expanded their cooperation in the foreign exchange and financial sectors by becoming increasingly proactive in using their own independent foreign exchange transaction frameworks, payment systems and settlement tools. In fact, national currencies accounted for over 85 percent of commercial transactions within the CIS. In addition to this, import substitution is gaining momentum, helping our countries reinforce their technological sovereignty. All this is instrumental in the current international landscape with its challenges.
We persisted in our effort to expand our legal and contractual framework within the CIS. In 2024, the agreements on free trade in services and investment came into force. There was also an agreement on fighting the legalisation of criminal proceeds and financing terrorism, a treaty establishing an international organisation for the Russian language, as well as several other important agreements to promote partnerships in the electric power industry, environmental protection and justice.
CIS countries have stepped up their efforts in fighting extremism, cross-border crime and drug trafficking. They have also established routine contacts among their security and law enforcement agencies. In August and September 2024, Uzbekistan hosted the East-Anti-Terror 2024 exercise for CIS countries. We adopted a cooperation programme on deradicalisation.
Our countries share multi-faceted humanitarian ties which are rooted in our common past and the fact that our cultures are closely intertwined. We share the same moral and spiritual values, as well as close family bonds.
In 2024, there were several promising projects within the CIS in education, culture, tourism, and youth policy. St Petersburg hosted a united cultures’ forum, while Ufa served as a venue for a forum that brought together creative leaders and researchers from across the CIS.
I would like to remind you that this year has been declared the Year of the Volunteer Movement in the CIS, and the Russian chairmanship has tried to develop an interaction system in this sphere. We have established a special interstate working group and held over 170 volunteer events, missions and charity actions.
The CIS countries have access to the Russian online platform dobro.org, where volunteers around the world can exchange experience and pool efforts for joint projects. I believe that we could support the proposal to create an international association of non-profit volunteer organisations within the CIS, hold CIS volunteer forums annually, and introduce special grants for the most significant volunteer initiatives through the CIS Humanitarian Cooperation Fund.
We are expanding sports exchanges, hold regular tournaments at different levels, and create and promote new formats of competitions, including those combining traditional sports and new technologies, which enjoys great demand in light of the politicisation of sports. The CIS countries sent their national teams to the multi-sport Games of the Future held in Kazan, the BRICS Sport Games, the Children of Asia tournament and part of the Silk Way Rally route.
It is notable that the CIS countries have the same or close views on the key global and regional issues. At the same time, all CIS countries stand for creating a just world order based on the universally recognised principles of international law and the central role of the UN.
Of course, the CIS countries also remember and hold sacred the immortal heroism of our peoples, the peoples of the Soviet Union who fought side by side to bring our victory in the Great Patriotic War. Next year, we will celebrate a landmark date, the 80th anniversary of Victory, and so the year 2025 has been declared the Year of Peace and Unity in the Fight Against Nazism in the CIS.
I would like to emphasise that while paying tribute to our veterans and workers of the home front, who defended our freedom and independence, we should also try to preserve the historical truth about those events. We must remember the price we paid for liberating the world from Nazism and promote the appreciation of Victory, which we won in 1945, as a common treasure of humanity as a whole.
Friends, we look forward to seeing you at the celebrations in Moscow on May 9. We also hope that military units from the CIS countries will take part in the parade on Red Square.
Colleagues, on January 1, 2025, Russia will hand over the CIS chairmanship to Tajikistan. I would like to wish success to Mr Emomali Rahmon and all our Tajik friends. We are ready to provide all the necessary assistance to them. Overall, I am confident that the deepening of partnership in various spheres within the CIS meets the fundamental interests of our nations. I have no doubt that we will continue to work together to fulfil our socioeconomic development tasks and to strengthen stability and security.
I would like to use this occasion to extend my most cordial greetings on the upcoming New Year and to wish health, happiness, well-being and prosperity to the citizens of your countries.
Thank you.