CIS leaders’ meeting in Ashgabat results in signing of eight documents

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbai Jeenbekov, President of the Republic of Moldova Igor Dodon, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev arrived in Ashgabat for participation in the session, which turkemnistan held as a country chairing the CIS this year.  The Republic of Armenia is represented by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The session started with an exchange of opinions on cooperation within the CIS and the discussion of the CIS chairmanship in 2020.

After, the session of the Council of the CIS Heads of the State was continued in extended format.

The meeting reportedly focused on the strengthening of economic and security cooperation among the CIS member nations.

In statements released at a press conference in Ashgabat, CIS Executive Secretary Sergey Lebedev and Turkmen Foreign minister Rashd Meredov presented the summit results, according to Turkmenistan’s national news agency Turkmenistan Today

Lebedev, in particular, noted that eight submitted for consideration to the CIS leaders were signed at the session.

According to him, the session participants exchanged views on topical issues of integration interaction and positions on priority directions for further development of the CIS were verified.

Speaking about the results of the summit, Rashid Meredov reportedly focused on the importance of signing the Declaration on the strategic economic partnership of the CIS member nations, the development of which was initiated by the President of Turkmenistan in October 2017 in Sochi. All Commonwealth states participated in the preparation of this document.

The document is reportedly aimed at the formation of coordinated approach to implementation of economic interests of the CIS in general and each member states. It proposes the establishment of effective mechanisms of partnership allowing improvement of economic relations both under the CIS and with other integration associations and separate countries.

The project was approved in general at the CIS Economic Council in Ashgabat on September 13 and included to the agenda of the October 11 Summit. 

Meredov called the Address of the heads of the CIS member states to the peoples of the CIS and international community on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 as an archival document in the aspect of preserving the historical memory and patriotic education of the younger generation. In this regard, the President of Turkmenistan made proposals for the implementation of this document.

Speaking of the subjects related to organization of events on occasion of the 75th anniversary of Victory in Great Patriotic War, the session participants reportedly highlighted the importance of coming event.

The leaders of the CIS member nations voted for the transfer of the chairmanship to Uzbekistan and Uzbekistan will formally take over the rotating chair of the organization in 2020.  The next meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of State will be held in Tashkent on October 16, 2020.  Such a decision was made on October 11 at the session of the CIS Council of Heads of State in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.

The Council of Heads of State is a supreme body of the CIS, which discusses and solves any principle questions of the Commonwealth related to the common interests of the CIS member nations. 

Established on December 8, 1991 after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional organization.  It now consists of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.  Georgia pulled out of the organization in 2009.

Although Ukraine was one of the founding countries and ratified the Creation Agreement in December 1991, Ukraine chose not to ratify the CIS Charter as it disagrees with Russia being the only legal successor state to the Soviet Union.  Thus it does not regard itself as a member of the CIS.  In 1993, Ukraine became an "Associate Member" of CIS.  On March 14, 2014, a bill was introduced to Ukraine's parliament to denounce their ratification of the 1991 Agreement Establishing the CIS, following the Russian military intervention in Ukraine and annexation of Crimea, but was never approved.  Following the 2014 parliamentary election, a new bill to denounce the CIS agreement was introduced.  In September 2015, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed Ukraine will continue taking part in CIS “on a selective basis.”  Since that month, Ukraine has had no representatives in the CIS Executive Committee building.  In April 2018, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko indicated that Ukraine would formally leave the CIS.  On May 19, 2018, Poroshenko signed a decree formally ending Ukraine's participation in CIS statutory bodies.  However, as of June 1, the CIS secretariat had not received formal notice from Ukraine of its withdrawal from the CIS, a process which will take 1 year following notice being given.  Ukraine has stated that intends review its participation in all CIS agreements, and only continue in those that are in its interests.