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Independent neutral Turkmenistan continues to successfully implement the strategy of broad international cooperation developed by the leader of the nation Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, actively developing constructive political dialogue and fruitful trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian ties with all interested countries of the world.
An important aspect of Turkmenistan's foreign policy strategy is strengthening of mutually beneficial relations with neighboring states, based on the centuries-old traditions of inviolable friendship, trust and mutual understanding.
Thus, during a telephone conversation on October 3, the heads of the foreign affairs agencies of Turkmenistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran considered a wide range of issues of interstate interaction on bilateral and multilateral basis.
The need to further expand partnership in the political-diplomatic, trade-economic and cultural-humanitarian spheres, as well as the readiness of the parties to hold the next meeting of the Intergovernmental Turkmen-Iranian Commission on Economic Cooperation, was emphasized.
The expansion of trade and economic ties remains the dominant feature of the interstate dialogue with the Republic of Uzbekistan, which the leader of the nation Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov visited in early October on a two-day official visit. The business prologue to the next summit meeting was the Turkmen-Uzbek economic forum held in the Tashkent innovation technopark “Yashnabad”.
The mutual interest of neighboring countries in diversifying mutually beneficial cooperation was confirmed by the signing of 13 bilateral documents, including those providing for the implementation of export-import operations for a total amount of about USD 13.5 million.
Turkmen-Romanian inter-MFA consultations were held on October 5th, in the format of video conference, creating discussion grounds for a wide range of issues of interaction in various fields, including in the field of education.
On October 7th, Ashgabat hosted a meeting of the co-chairs of the Intergovernmental Turkmen-Russian Commission on Economic Cooperation, which was attended by heads and representatives of government agencies, including ministries and sectoral departments, as well as business circles of the two countries.
The co-chairs of the Commission - Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan S. Berdimuhamedov and Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation A. Overchuk - noted with satisfaction the growing dynamics of the interstate dialogue, which has acquired new qualitative content in recent years.
Following the meeting, the Program of Economic Cooperation between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government of the Russian Federation for 2021-2023 was signed, which, by replenishing the legal framework of bilateral relations, will contribute to the creation of favorable conditions for their diversification with a long-term perspective.
On October 8th, the first Youth Conference on Climate Change in Turkmenistan was held at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a mixed format. The Forum was organized jointly with the British Embassy and the UN Resident Mission in Turkmenistan in advance of the Conference of Youth (COY16) and the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Glasgow.
On October 7th, the Foreign Ministry held a meeting with the Director of the Regional Office for Europe of the World Health Organization Hans Kluge. The Turkmen side familiarized the guest with the main initiatives and proposals in the profile field put forward by President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov at various international platforms, confirming the focus of Turkmenistan on further development and strengthening of cooperation with WHO.
Another evidence of this was the international conference “Medical diplomacy - the basis of a healthy world” held a day later, timed to coincide with the Day of Healthcare Workers and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan.
The forum, held in the capital's hotel “Yildiz” in a mixed format, was attended by representatives of the health sector from 15 countries. The speakers emphasized that the pandemic that gripped the entire world gave special importance to medical diplomacy aimed at consolidating the efforts of the international community in confronting this global threat.
Another significant event, which presented a wonderful opportunity to familiarize the general public with the significant achievements of the domestic health care system and further build bridges of cooperation with foreign partners, was the international scientific conference “Healthcare, education and sports in an era of power and happiness” held on October 10th.
Popularization of the successes of our country, achieved in various industries over 30 years of independence, has become the main goal of participation of the Turkmen side in the EXPO-2020 World Exhibition held in Dubai (United Arab Emirates).
On October 9th, the National Day of Turkmenistan was held at the site of the global Expo forum, attended by President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, who was paying a working visit to UAE.
The total area of the territory allocated for the Turkmen exhibition facility is 1,581 square meters. The pavilion of Turkmenistan is located in the thematic zone “Mobility”, and its architectural image embodies the idea of constant movement as a guarantee of progressive development. There is a sculptural fountain composition at the entrance to the exposition center. Five graceful “heavenly” horses symbolize the rapid stride of our country to the heights of progress, respect for the national heritage, the unity of goals and the unity of our people.
The participation of Turkmenistan in “EXPO-2020”, which will last until the end of March 2022, is a clear evidence of the international authority of our state, the great interest of the world community in its recent history, directly related to the progressive initiatives of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.
As part of the negotiations held here by members of the government delegation of Turkmenistan with UAE officials, a number of bilateral documents were signed.
On October 12th, the sixth meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) was held in the city of Nur-Sultan, for which a Turkmen delegation was sent to Kazakhstan.
During the forum, the importance of granting Turkmenistan the status of an observer country in the CICA was noted. It was especially emphasized that our state shares the principles and tasks on which the work of the CICA is built, namely: achieving peace and security on the Asian continent through political dialogue and cooperation, strengthening common regional and international security.
On October 13th, the Foreign Ministry hosted a videoconference meeting with the UN Under-Secretary-General, Head of the UN Counter-Terrorism Office (UNCTU) Vladimir Voronkov.
On the same day, the delegation of Turkmenistan headed by the Chairman of the Mejlis of Milli Gengesh took part in the work of the III Eurasian Women's Forum, organized by the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation jointly with the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS member states.
The main topic of the meeting, which was held in a mixed format, was “Women: a global mission in a new reality”. In the unanimous opinion of the participants, the forum became a good platform for expanding cooperation between countries, exchange of views and experience with other parliamentary colleagues in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
In the second decade of last month, the Foreign Ministry held meetings with foreign diplomats - Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Said bin Osman Ahmed Suweid, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Armenia Ruben Kharazyan, who emphasized that their activities would help to strengthen bilateral relations in every possible way. various areas of interaction.
On October 14th, by videoconference, a meeting of the Government Commission was held to study issues related to Turkmenistan's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The priority directions for the development of a constructive inter-parliamentary dialogue were discussed in the framework of a telephone conversation held on October 18th between the Chairman of the Mejlis of Milli Gengesh of Turkmenistan G. Mammedova and the Chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation V. Matvienko.
On October 20th, the VIII Turkmen-Russian Economic Forum, organized by the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the two countries via videoconference, was held in order to discuss joint investment and production projects, strengthen and expand cooperation in the field of industry and production of building materials, textile industry, agriculture, as well as in spheres of logistics, tourism, digital technologies.
On the same day, a meeting of the Moscow format of consultations on Afghanistan was held in the capital of the Russian Federation, gathering representatives of more than 10 countries, including Turkmenistan.
During the multilateral dialogue, topical issues were raised regarding the consolidation of the efforts of the international community to prevent the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, as well as to ensure inclusive conditions for development in this country.
The issues of further expanding productive interaction in various fields were put on the agenda of the 20th meeting of the joint committee “Turkmenistan-European Union”, which was held on October 21st at the Ministry of Finance and Economy in an online format.
The representatives of the Turkmen side in their speeches emphasized that one of the priority directions of the foreign policy strategy successfully implemented under the leadership of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov is the strengthening of the partnership with the European Union, which has significantly intensified in recent years.
Interaction with the EU is effectively developing within the framework of existing mechanisms and structures, in particular, the European Union - Turkmenistan joint committee, the Inter-Parliamentary Dialogue, the Dialogue on Human Rights, consultative meetings between the foreign ministries and on certain issues of cooperation.
On October 20th, an online Turkmen-Swiss business forum was held with the participation of representatives of chambers of commerce, a number of ministries, departments and business circles of Turkmenistan and the Swiss Confederation.
On October 21st, a meeting with the Director of the Regional Office of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Viorel Gutsu was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs via video conferencing.
As it was emphasized, the Turkmen side highly appreciates the activities of FAO and intends to develop effective cooperation aimed at using world practices in the field of sustainable agricultural development and improving measures to maintain food security.
In accordance with the Order of the President of Turkmenistan, on October 26-28, a delegation of our country headed by Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister of Foreign Affairs R. Meredov was sent on a working trip to the city of Tehran to participate in the work of the next, 16th meeting of the Joint Turkmen-Iranian commission for economic cooperation, as well as holding a number of bilateral meetings and political consultations between the ministries of foreign affairs of Turkmenistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
During the meeting with the President of Iran, Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, it was stated that there is a solid potential in the field of political, diplomatic, trade, economic and cultural and humanitarian interaction, mutual interest was expressed in further intensifying partnership through regional and international structures, in particular, through the UN platform.
It is noteworthy in this regard that on October 27th, Tehran also gosted the second meeting of the foreign ministers of the neighboring countries of Afghanistan + Russia, with participation of the foreign ministers of Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, as well as representatives of Russia and China.
The diplomats focused on the need to consolidate the efforts of the parties aimed at providing mutual assistance in forming an inclusive government in Afghanistan with the participation of all national groups in the country.
An important event of the past October was the XXVI International Conference “Oil and Gas of Turkmenistan-2021”, organized by the State Concerns Türkmengaz, Türkmennebit and the State Corporation Türkmengeologiýa in partnership with the ES Turkmen Forum, with the support of the British company GaffneyCline.
This year, marked by the glorious 30th anniversary of the independence of the Motherland, this prestigious forum, aimed at strengthening and developing international cooperation in the energy sector, was held not only in the traditional format, but was also broadcast from Ashgabat online to dozens of countries around the world. Thus, representatives of over 100 companies, large organizations and banks from more than 30 countries joined the conference via the digital link.
Such a solid composition of participants is a clear confirmation of the enormous interest of the business circles of various countries in building up productive interaction with Turkmenistan, which has a colossal energy potential and occupies one of the leading positions in the world in terms of hydrocarbon reserves.
Thus, the meetings held in October 2021 on behalf of the head of state by ministries and departments with interested partners and international organizations brought bright colors to the palette of the rich life of our dynamically developing country, confidently developing towards the sublime goals of the era of power and happiness under the wise and far-sighted leadership of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.
