CICA summit's outcome shows leaders' commitment to regional peace: Cambodian experts

PHNOM PENH - Cambodian scholars said Thursday that the results of the 4th summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) in China's Shanghai reflected leaders' concerted commitment to building a region of peace, security, stability and development.

CICA summit, opened by Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday morning, was the largest ever, gathering 11 heads of state, one government head and 10 chiefs of international organizations including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev, and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

According to a joint declaration issued at the end of the summit, CICA's members reiterated their collective desire to carry forward the spirit of solidarity, cooperation and mutual assistance, respect each other's sovereignty, and seek common development and progress.

The member states also expressed support to the orderly and peaceful conclusion of the ongoing developments in hotspot regions including the Middle East and North Africa.

They also vowed to further promote and reinforce energy security that has direct impact on sustainable development at national, regional and global levels.

"The joint declaration clearly shows unity among CICA's member states and their joint commitment towards building an Asian region of peace, stability, and development cooperation for prosperity together," Phay Siphan, spokesman for the Cambodian Council of Ministers, told Xinhua.

Chheang Vannarith, a senior researcher of the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace, said under the chairmanship of China, CICA created a significant milestone in a short history.

"CICA is going to play a more important role in promoting regional peace, stability and development," he told Xinhua. "It is emerging to be one of the many multilateral security institutions in Asia if its institutional arrangement and collective leadership are enhanced."

China took over the CICA presidency from Turkey for 2014 to 2016.

He suggested that for the next three years of operation, China and other member states should consult and develop a clear road map for their future plans of activity in order to deliver concrete results for their people.

Established in 1992, CICA now has 26 member states. It serves as a forum for dialogue and consultations and promotion of confidence building measures among its members on security and development in Asia, a land of great diversity.