Zhanar Tulindinova,
Head of the Media Projects Department
KazISS under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Today, the Seventh Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) was held in Baku. One of the substantive highlights of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s address was the expansion of the security agenda to reflect the changes that technology is bringing to relations between states. In this context, he proposed introducing artificial intelligence as CICA’s sixth dimension.
This initiative reflects a change in the very nature of international security. Traditional concerns about military predictability and dispute settlement are now accompanied by the need to agree on principles governing the use of technologies whose consequences extend far beyond national jurisdictions. Mutual trust now also requires confidence that the development of one country’s digital capabilities will not become a source of uncontrolled risks for others.
In this sense, the AI proposal and the initiative to establish a Preventive Diplomacy Mechanism follow the same logic: international institutions must be capable of acting proactively. In one case, the aim is to prevent the escalation of interstate disputes; in the other, it is to agree in advance on approaches to technological threats. The common objective is to narrow the gap between the emergence of a risk and a collective response to it.
It is through this objective that the significance of transforming CICA into a fully fledged international organization becomes clear. Against the backdrop of weakening international security in Asia, cooperation needs a more resilient institutional foundation. The essence of this transformation lies in the ability to translate political willingness to engage in dialogue into regular consultations, coordinated decisions, and mechanisms for implementing them. With such a broad membership, the ability to maintain engagement even amid substantial differences in interests becomes particularly valuable.
Another important emphasis in the address concerns the relationship between trust and economic interconnectedness. Transport routes, communication links, and energy networks create long-term commitments between states. They require agreed rules, infrastructure protection, and predictable decision-making. The proposal to develop a CICA Strategy on Transport Connectivity can therefore be seen as an effort to place the development of corridors within the broader context of regional security.
The Trans-Caspian Fiber-Optic Communication Line and the Caspian Green Energy Corridor give this logic concrete substance. As these projects develop, the Caspian becomes increasingly important as a hub connecting digital, energy, and transport flows. At the same time, the shared interest in its stability and environmental well-being grows. Interdependence does not in itself eliminate disagreements, but it creates additional incentives to resolve them through coordination.
The proposed CICA Water Partnership occupies a special place on this agenda. For Central Asia, water issues link food and energy security, the condition of ecosystems, and prospects for economic development. Joint research, technology exchange, and the adoption of water-saving solutions can strengthen the common informational and technological foundation for negotiations on water. This is particularly important where national priorities and planning horizons differ.
Taken together, Kazakhstan’s initiatives offer a substantive evolution of the very idea of confidence-building measures. Their scope now encompasses technology, infrastructure, and resource management, while their effectiveness is measured by states’ ability to reduce uncertainty and prevent crises together. For CICA, this shift toward practical mechanisms of cooperation could become the principal outcome of its institutional transformation.
