Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Feb. 12 / Trend H.Hasanov /
Iran "attaches great importance to friendly, brotherly Turkmenistan" in its foreign relations and "our bilateral relations are exemplary among regional countries," Iranian Ambassador to Turkmenistan Mohammadreza Forgani told Turkmen media outlets on the thirty-first anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution.
The trade turnover between Iran and Turkmenistan reached $3.2 billion in 2009, which deserves "special mention," the diplomat said. The two countries signed over 160 bilateral documents on cooperation, he added.
He noted that "there has been significant success in strengthening economic cooperation, including cooperation in the energy, oil and gas industry and the transit of electricity in the area of transport and industry."
The opening ceremony of a second gas pipeline from Turkmenistan and Iran took place during Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's last visit to Turkmenistan. The sides also signed a contract for the construction of the Etrek-Bereket railway.
"These projects will have a huge impact on the development of relations between the two countries and the whole Central Asian region," he said.