Uzbekistan proposes the establishment of Special Trust Fund for the Aral Sea under the aegis of the UN
Almaty. September 28. Silkroadnews - Uzbek Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov proposed the creation under the auspices of UN Special Trust Fund for the Aral Sea and the Aral Sea region, reported the UN news center.
"The direct consequence of the drying sea was a dramatic climate change which is felt not only in Central Asia but also in other regions. On revealing part of the Aral Sea formed a new salt desert with area of 5.5 million hectares. More than 90 days a year it has raging dust storms, spreading into the atmosphere for thousands of kilometers, each year more than 100 million tons of toxic dust and salts",- said A. Kamilov, speaking in New York at the UN summit on sustainable development goals.
He stressed that the threatening impact of the Aral Sea disaster observed today throughout the world.
"According to international experts, the poisonous salt from the Aral region are found on the coast of Antarctica, the glaciers of Greenland, the forests of Norway and many other parts of the world", - the minister said.
In his words, "the most serious, Aral Sea tragedy influenced the living conditions and the gene pool of 65 million people in Central Asia".
Uzbek Foreign Minister expressed hope that in the implementation of sustainable development, disaster of Aral Sea region will be taken into account.
"Given the planetary nature of the Aral Sea disaster it is necessary to enhance joint action and form a targeted financial arrangements. In this regard, it is appropriate to create, under the auspices of the UN, Special Trust Fund for the Aral Sea and the Aral Sea region", - said the head of the Foreign Ministry.
He stressed that the main objective of the fund will be coordination and implementation of targeted programs and projects, including the protection of the health and welfare of the population, to preserve the ecological balance of the Aral Sea region and the use of scarce water resources in the region.
