Moscow, Russia - The Eurasian Peace Council of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF) supports a global call for ceasefire and non-violence by the UN Secretary-General, under the slogan “We Must Disarm” in connection with the International Day of Peace, observed by the United Nations on September 21. This call is even more relevant for the region of Eurasia, which is abundant with crisis and conflict situations, especially in the former Soviet Union.
Open and ‘frozen’ conflicts in Eurasia cannot be resolved by force, but only through dialogue and compromise, on the basis of the principle of territorial integrity of states, with due respect to the right of nations for self-determination.
In this regard, we the Eurasian Peace Council, conclude that the founding goals of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have not been reached, which has resulted in new conflicts and escalation of old conflicts. Undue respect to the ‘human dimension’ of relations between the CIS Member States, and the de-facto absence of the CIS ‘common humanitarian space’ has also resulted in political and economic instability in the post-Soviet territory.
By addressing the root causes of conflict embedded in people’s heart the Eurasian Peace Council, being supported by the UPF, hopes to build peace, harmony, and cooperation between cultures and religions, based on core human values and universal moral principles. This is the way to reconciliation, accord, and effective peacemaking.
We are deeply concerned about the situation in the conflict zones of the South Caucasus, which remains tense and continues to threaten international peace and security. The Eurasian Peace Council calls upon the sides of the conflict involving Georgia, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Russia to comply, in due course, with the commitments as outlined earlier in the “Dmitry Medvedev – Nicolas Sarkozy peace plan” and agreed upon by the leadership of Georgia. We also call upon the sides of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to adhere to a peaceful resolution of the conflict, based on the Madrid principles.
The Eurasian Peace Council is ready to contribute to the resolution of the Transnistria conflict. As in the South Caucasus, special attention should be paid to human development and human security challenges. We call upon the conflicting sides to discuss the issues of sovereignty, borders, and territorial integrity in a broader humanitarian context.
We call upon government and non-government organizations and international institutions to jointly elaborate on the minimal human security standards to be applied in the conflict zones in accordance with the UN Human Rights standards and international humanitarian law. We also call for a concerted international effort aimed at providing humanitarian relief and technical assistance to those in need, including refugees, internally displaced persons, and other civilian populations.
The Eurasian Peace Council herein announces the launch of the Baltic Dialogue. This new peace initiative is aimed at establishing a new channel of communication between the peoples of the Baltic nations and Russia on the basis of shared European values for the purpose of promoting better relations between the Russian-speaking and the native populations of the Baltic states and also to support the process of the European integration of the peoples of Russia and the Baltics.
The Eurasian Peace Council calls all those striving for peace in the region to mutual understanding and cooperation; it seeks a collaborative approach to peace involving governmental and non-governmental organizations, various faith-based organizations, and the private sector, aimed at resolving crises and conflict situations in Eurasia.
Moscow,
September 21, 2009
For more information about the South Caucasus Peace Initiative, click here.