Secretary General met with Chairman of the CEC of the Republic of Kazakhstan

On 13 May 2025, Secretary General Mehmet Süreyya Er met with the Chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC) of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nurlan Abdirov. The meeting took place during the visit of the Secretary General to the city of Turkistan, Kazakhstan, to take part in the signing ceremony of the Regulations on the Advisory Platform of the Central Election Authorities (APCEA) of the Member States of the Organizations of Turkic States (OTS), and related events. Chairman of the CEC Nurlan Abdirov welcomed the TURKPA delegation and emphasized the importance of participation of the TURKPA Secretary General in this visit. Mr. Abdirov noted that the establishment of the APCEA started at the initiative of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, which was supported by all Heads of Turkic States. Noting that each Turkic state has its experience in the field of elections, Chairman of the CEC underlined that the meetings of the Platform and sharing of these experiences would be beneficial for all Turkic states. He touched on the participation of TURKPA in the observation of elections and referenda and stressed the significant role of TURKPA as an international structure. Mr. Abdirov also briefed on the program of the visit of the heads of central election authorities and international organizations to the city of Turkistan. Secretary General Mehmet Süreyya Er expressed his gratitude for the invitation to take part in the event and pleasure to visit once again the city of Turkistan, the Spiritual Capital of the Turkic World and the home of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi. He touched on the observation of elections and referenda as one of the directions of activity of TURKPA and noted that the objective of TURKPA observation missions is to evaluate the compliance of elections and referenda with national legislation and international standards, and at the same time, to contribute to the promotion of democratic values. Secretary General mentioned the rich and substantive program of the visit. He underlined the significance of the establishment of the Platform and noted that this will give impetus to the strengthening of cooperation in the field of elections. Member of the CEC of the Republic of Kazakhstan Assylbek Smagulov and staff members of the TURKPA Secretariat Azar Mammadov and Shakhida Mekhdieva also took part in the meeting.