25th Anniversary of Permanent Neutrality of Turkmenistan: Ambassador Briefs Journalists on Achievements

Islamabad; 30 Jan 2020 – Turkmenistan is  celebrating the 25th anniversary of the international recognition of the Neutrality of Turkmenistan this year 2020, which is certainly a landmark event not only for the Turkmen nation, but for the entire world community.

Embassy of Turkmenistan hosted a briefing in this regard, to bring to the attention of Pakistani press and media about what has been significant in the foreign policy of Neutral Turkmenistan recently and about plans for 2020.

Ambassador H.E Atadjan  Movlamov invited senior journalists of Islamabad on 30 Jan 2020 to share the experiences and achievements of the Neutrality so far.

The Ambassador highlighted the initiatives that have been taken for the promotion of peace, development of Turkmenistan, the significant foreign policy and plans for 2020.He said that from 2017 to 2019, Turkmenistan chaired the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea for joint management and rational use of water resources and environmental protection in the Aral Basin which was agreed by all the five Central Asian Countries.

Ambassador said that strengthening constructive cooperation in the Caspian Sea is one of the priority vectors of Turkmenistan’s foreign policy. Turkmenistan has introduced new promising format of international partnerships based on shared values and united common goals and objectives. Recently, Turkmenistan also proposed the creation of the Group of Friends of Neutrality in the Interests of Peace and Security for closest cooperation with all parties interested in promoting this initiative.

The ambassador also stated that there is huge potential of cooperation amongst Pakistan and Turkmenistan and TAPI and TAP projects are an example of it. This modern rapprochement between Turkmenistan and Pakistan is a logical continuation of the long historical stage of continuous interaction and cooperation. These projects will intensify the economic development and brotherhood relations and will contribute to the prosperity and well-being of the both the countries.

Chairperson COPAIR Ms Amna Malik also addressed the gathering. She shared her experiences of visit to Turkmenistan recently. She said that Turkmenistan and Pakistan can enhance their cooperation in different sectors.

“Turkmenistan Home of Neutrality”.

In 2020, Turkmenistan marks a significant event – the 25th anniversary of the international recognition of the neutrality of Turkmenistan. In this regard, 2020 will be held according to the slogan: “Turkmenistan Home of Neutrality”.

An important partner of Turkmenistan in the international arena is international organizations, and one of the first important events in Turkmenistan in the new 2020 year was the International Conference “Turkmenistan and International Organizations: Cooperation for Peace and Development”, held on January 14, 2020 in Ashgabat, dedicated to the celebration of 2020- The year of the 25th anniversary of the permanent Neutrality of Turkmenistan under the slogan “Turkmenistan is the homeland of Neutrality.”

The President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov attended the grand opening of the International Conference.

At the beginning of his speech, the President of Turkmenistan announced an international high-level conference “The policy of neutrality and its importance in ensuring international peace, security and sustainable development”, which is scheduled to be held on December 12 this year in Ashgabat and called for the participation of representatives of the UN and friendly countries.

Further, the head of state spoke about the background of the neutrality of our country, and also outlined the main directions of Turkmenistan’s foreign policy at this stage.

For Turkmenistan, which gained independence in a hard time, when the entire system of international relations was going through a period of radical changes,the issue of choosing a foreign policy had become one of the most important, the President said.

Turkmenistan chose a model called positive neutrality and formulated its fundamental provisions: peacefulness, non-interference in the affairs of other states, respect for their sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-participation in international military organizations and treaties.

We began to purposefully pursue a sovereign, neutral, but at the same time active and constructive foreign policy. It is not surprising, therefore, that the world has kindly and understandingly reacted to our efforts to consolidate the neutrality of Turkmenistan as an international legal status. Our country received support first from its neighbors in the region, then in the Non-Aligned Movement.