The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Kazakhstan's Secretary of State and Foreign Minister Kanat Saudabayev, urged the states participating on the OSCE summit in Astana to "show the wisdom and courage of true leaders and reach consensus on the important issue of strengthening security and cooperation".

“To reduce risks across the OSCE area, we focused on inter-ethnic and inter-religious issues,” he said.

“The work carried out in the framework of ongoing negotiations on protracted conflicts prompts cautious optimism, despite all difficulties,” Saudabayev added.