Turkmenistan, Ashgabat, Feb. 8 / Trend, H. Hasanov /
Ashgabat hosted a meeting of the Turkmen-Russian commission for economic cooperation, an official Turkmen source said today.
Deputy Chairman of the Russian government Arkady Dvorkovich participated on behalf of Russia after being received by Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.
"Russia values its friendly relations with Turkmenistan and intends to strengthen and develop multifaceted cooperation," Neutral Turkmenistan newspaper cited Dvorkovich as saying.
According to Vatan newspaper, Russia delivered proposals for consideration in Ashgabat. They are designed to give new impetus to the inter-state relations.
The fuel and energy complex, which is traditionally part of the strategic partnership, engineering and agriculture are the priority areas of cooperation.
"It was stressed that Russian companies are actively interested in dynamically developing the Turkmen market, examining opportunities for trade and making investments for individual projects," a government statement said.
The two countries have been traditionally cooperating in the fuel-energy sector. Russia's Gazprom has been buying around 10 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas annually in recent years. "Tatneft" is working in the western region of Turkmenistan. Itera has been involved in the Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea.
Turkmenistan has also increased cooperation with the major regions of the Russian Federation in recent years, including in Tatarstan, St. Petersburg, Astrakhan and Sverdlovsk as well as in other regions of the Russian Federation.
The largest educational and trade service center in Central Asia, 'KAMAZ' is located in Ashgabat, as the total number of vehicles of this brand in Turkmenistan amounts to more than 10,000.