Turkmen president hails ties with Turkey, vows to enhance cooperation
Turkish President Gül (L) greets Turkmenistan’s President Muhammedov at Çırağan Palace during the Turkic-speaking states’ 10th summit, held in İstanbul in 2010.
28 February 2012 / CEMİL YILDIZ, ASHGABAT
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov has praised his country's ties with Turkey, saying they amount to a strategic partnership, and called Turkey and Turkmenistan “one nation with two states.”
Berdimuhammedov, re-elected to his post in elections earlier this month, is to begin a visit to Turkey on Wednesday, his first trip abroad following the Feb. 12 elections, where he was re-elected as president with 83 percent of the vote. The visit, the fifth trip by the Turkmen leader to Turkey in the past four years, also coincides with the anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Turkmenistan 20 years ago.
“We are one nation with two states. Our peoples have common roots. This is confirmed not only by historical sources but also by the [state of] our current relations,” Berdimuhammedov told Turkish journalists at his presidential residence ahead of his visit.
Touching upon a wide range of issues, from cultural relations to tourism, from the economy to political ties, Berdimuhammedov’s top priority is how to improve current economic ties, which enjoy substantial progress despite apparent uncertainties in a volatile global economy.
In 2010, the volume of trade between Turkey and Turkmenistan rose by 19 percent compared to 2009, reaching $1.5 billion. In 2011, the volume of foreign trade reached $1.8 billion, import from Turkmenistan being worth around $39 million and export to Turkmenistan worth $1.4 billion. Turkish construction companies have taken on 690 projects in Turkmenistan at a cost of around $23.7 billion in total. In 2010, they contracted 56 projects with a total value of around $4.3 billion, and in 2011, 59 projects were contracted with a value of $3.2 billion. As Turkey has risen to become Turkmenistan’s number one foreign trade partner over the past four years, it has replaced the Russian Federation, and out of all the countries in Central Asia, it is Turkmenistan where Turkish companies are engaged in the greatest number of projects.
In 2011, the trade between countries increased 25 percent in comparison to the previous year.
Great progress since independence
Not facing the political and social turmoil that hindered development and stability in most of Turkmenistan’s neighbors, Berdimuhammedov noted that Turkmenistan has achieved great progress in the economic field with a government initiative titled “Great Development Period.” Thanks to the great efforts launched by the state, citizens now enjoy relative prosperity, he said.
Turkmenistan, a country of 5 million, has enjoyed an economic boom over the past decade.
According to Berdimuhammedov, spreading welfare and prosperity to all segments of the society was the key indicator for his success during the first term of his presidency, adding that with the suggestion of the Turkmen people they named this period the “Happy years of the independence.”
The society reacted positively to the social welfare policies of the state, he commented, referring to his landslide win in the Feb. 12 elections.
“The Turkmen people showed their confidence in me, indicating that Turkmenistan is on the right course. In the last period, there was significant progress in agriculture, construction, in the social life of the people and in other fields,” said Berdimuhammedov. Addressing Turkey’s growing economic and diplomatic clout in international affairs, he emphasized that Turkmenistan gives vital importance to improving relations with Turkey.
He noted that the Republic of Turkey is a reliable and strategic partner. The relations rely on mutual respect and understanding, on equal terms, trust and mutual benefit, he said.
In the last period, experts and businessmen from Turkey made a remarkable contribution to the realization of social and economic projects in the Central Asian country. He addressed the existence of opportunities in various sectors, such as chemistry, transportation, communication, health and construction, which have great potential to develop economic relations through investing in Turkmenistan. Beyond the economic aspect of the relations, cooperation in education is also another dimension of the bilateral relations, as 700 Turkmen students receive education in Turkey as part of agreements in the field of education, he noted. Adding that Turkish scientists actively join international conferences, festivals and other cultural and scientific activities on behalf of Turkmenistan, he pointed out that several activities in Turkey’s metropolitan cities were held over the past few years to introduce Turkmen culture.
In response to a question from journalists, the Turkmen president noted that Turkmenistan is seeking ways to remove its economic dependence on energy income, which lies at the core of the Turkmen economy. In order to achieve that goal, Turkmenistan is investing in human capital, infrastructure and industry, he noted. The primary objective for Turkmenistan to promote prosperity and welfare for its people is by having a strong industrial economy, he reiterated. Turkmenistan is among the countries which have a high level of economic development and competitiveness in the 21st century, he pointed out. On energy, Berdimuhammedov underlined that Turkmenistan is using its energy resources vary rationally. The Turkmen leader cited the findings of the British oil field auditing company Gaffney Cline, which revealed that Turkmenistan’s South Yolotan field is the world’s second largest gas field. “Last year Gaffney Cline & Associates [the British oil field auditing company] carried out examinations in the Yolotan gas field. The reserve potential of this great gas field is 26.2 trillion cubic meters. This means this gas field is the second in the world in terms of reserve potential,” he said.
Noting that Turkmenistan is a reliable country in the energy business in global markets, Berdimuhammedov said the construction of the second part of a Turkmenistan-China natural gas pipeline is now being carried out.
In addition, he said the project of constructing a Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline is under way. Among the different projects, Turkmenistan is also considering various routes to deliver gas to Europe. Along with the construction of new pipelines, the country is renewing its current infrastructure and reconstructing some of its existing pipelines, he said. He noted that Turkmenistan actively engages in diplomatic efforts at the UN General Assembly to hammer out several projects to provide energy security in the international arena. The safe delivery of energy resources to global markets is of vital importance for the country, he underlined.
Turkmen president hails ties with Turkey, vows to enhance cooperation
