Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, May 19 /trend H.Hasanov/
President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov received Deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Vasily Likhachev, the Turkmen government said on Saturday.
"Cooperation with Russia has been and remains one of the strategic priorities of the foreign policy of Turkmenistan," Berdymukhamedov said at the meeting.
The sides noted the high level of inter-state dialogue that has been developing due to the goodwill and efforts of the parties in recent years.
Strengthening of inter-parliamentary dialogue, as well as intensifying the fruitful humanitarian contacts between Turkmenistan and the Russian Federation were called among the priority areas along with the further intensification of mutually beneficial economic partnership
The two sides expressed confidence in further successful development of Turkmen-Russian relations, based on equal and mutually respectful partnership.
According to the Russian side, the trade turnover between Russia and Turkmenistan is growing steadily and reached $ 4.3 billion in the light of gas supplies in 2011.
Cooperation in the field of fuel and energy complex is the strategic direction in the relationship between the two countries. Turkmen gas comes to Russia through the pipeline Middle Asia - Center through the territories of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. Customer - JSC Gazprom (Russia), signed an agreement with Turkmenistan on gas supplies for 25 years in 2003.
Currently, the pipeline Middle Asia - Center does not work at full capacity. Russia under the influence of the global recession of 2010 reduced the purchase of up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas, which is four times less than in 2008. Russian companies participate in the development of Turkmen hydrocarbon resources. The Russian Itera and Zarubezhneft are working within a production sharing agreement on one of the blocks in the Caspian Sea shelf.
Turkmenistan in recent years stepped up direct cooperation with the regions of Russia - Saint Petersburg, Tatarstan, the Astrakhan region and others.