A meeting within the framework of the Human Rights Dialogue “Turkmenistan – the European Union”

Ashgabat; On June 18, 2020, a regular meeting as part of the Human Rights Dialogue “Turkmenistan – European Union” was held in the form of a video conference.

The heads and representatives of relevant ministries and departments of the country, including the Mejlis of Turkmenistan, the Ombudswoman of Turkmenistan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs and others attended the meeting.

The European side at the meeting was represented by the head and representatives of the European Service for Foreign Policy Activities, as well as the Head of the European Union Delegation to Turkmenistan.

During the meeting, issues of expanding cooperation between Turkmenistan and the EU in the field of human rights and international humanitarian law were discussed. An exchange of views took place on such issues as the development of civil society, the rule of law and judicial reform, as well as intensive interaction between the parties to reduce the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the framework of the online meeting, the participants discussed the comprehensive promotion of economic, social and cultural rights of the people in the framework of international and local documents, including the National Plan of Action for Gender Equality for 2015-2020, the National Human Rights Action Plan for 2016-2020, the National Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings for 2020-2022, the National Plan of Action for the realization of children’s rights in Turkmenistan for 2018-2022, as well as the National Strategy of Turkmenistan for the Early Development of the Child for 2020-2025 and others.

Also during the dialogue, the parties expressed views on expanding cooperation between Turkmenistan and the EU in the framework of multilateral forums and international organizations.

The current session of the Human Rights Dialogue “Turkmenistan – European Union” serves yet as another proof of the adherence of the parties to multifaceted bilateral cooperation.