Different civilizations seek understanding

ASTANA: Representatives of 54 countries of the Muslim and Western worlds, as well as eight international organizations met on Friday to discuss issues concerning the two civilizations at the conference Common World: Progress through Diversity, held in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan.

They include Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran's minister of foreign affairs; Sergey Lavrov, Russia's minister of foreign affairs; Zalmay Khalilzad, the US ambassador to the UN; and Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Conference.

"There are no such things as big or small cultures in the world, or strong or weak religions. They are all blended into an integral whole. The modern world is like a mosaic: if one piece is missing, the whole picture collapses," Kazak President Nursultan A. Nazarbayevsaid at the conference.