Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Aug. 19
By Huseyn Hasanov – Trend:
The preparation for the state visit of Kyrgyzstan’s President Sooronbay Jeenbekov to Turkmenistan scheduled for the next week is underway, Turkmen Dovlet Khabarlary (TDH) state news agency reported.
President Jeenbekov is expected to attend the summit of the heads of the founding states of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea (IFAS) in Avaza national seaside tourism zone on August 24.
A wide range of issues of interstate relations will be on the agenda of the next high-level talks.
Following the visit, a number of documents, aimed at bringing the Turkmenistan-Kyrgyzstan cooperation to a new level that meets modern realities and the existing potential were signed.
President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov stressed that one of the key vectors of Turkmenistan’s foreign policy is the strengthening and expansion of a fruitful dialogue with neighboring countries, including Kyrgyzstan.
Today, there are new perspectives and opportunities for mutually beneficial bilateral relations that meet the interests of common prosperity, the Turkmen president said.
Kyrgyzstan was interested in import of Turkmen liquefied gas, Kyrgyzstan’s representatives said at the meeting of the Turkmen-Kyrgyz intergovernmental commission in Ashgabat.
Kyrgyzstan is negotiating with the State Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange of Turkmenistan to find ways to increase trade turnover.
Turkmenistan is ready to consider the possibilities of joint mining and processing of minerals in Kyrgyzstan. The parties also discuss the prospects for partnership in the field of industry and transport.
Turkmenistan holds a key position in the region for natural gas supplies. China is a big importer of Turkmen gas.
Ashgabat and Bishkek are involved in a major project to deliver Central Asian gas to China, primarily from Turkmenistan. China's CNPC company has been purchasing natural fuel in the region since 2009, after launching the first two gas pipeline branches (A and B) beginning from Turkmenistan and passing through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
The third branch (C) was put into operation recently, which also runs along the same route. A project is being developed currently for the construction of an additional fourth branch (D) – along new transit route - through Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.