At an expanded meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers last Friday, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov instructed the government to begin work on restoring international trade and economic relations and transport links affected by the pandemic.

The pandemic had a negative impact on international trade and economic relations, transport links, the head of state said, ordering to begin the necessary work to restore these systems.

“For further development, they should be brought to their previous state and level of development,” the President said, stressing the particular importance of regional cooperation for Turkmenistan.

Noting the importance of fulfilling the agreements reached on the implementation of joint infrastructure projects, the leader of the nation ordered to speed up the practical implementation of the Afghanistan-Turkmenistan-Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey transport corridor agreement signed in Ashgabat in 2017 (Lapis Lazuli).

Among the priority tasks, the President instructed to use the railways Kazakhstan-Iran-Turkmenistan, Kerki-Ymamnazar-Akina (Afghanistan), railway and road bridges across the Amu Darya to full capacity, rapidly build the TAPI gas pipeline, power transmission lines and fiber-optic communication systems Turkmenistan -Afghanistan-Pakistan.

The Foreign Ministry was instructed, taking into account the national interests of Turkmenistan and topical issues of cooperation with the countries of Central Asia, to prepare proposals for the development of bilateral relations with each of the states of the region for 2021.

The head of Turkmenistan also instructed to start preparations for the sixth Caspian high-level meeting, which is planned to be held in our country in 2021.

Currently, the Caspian Sea region is turning into one of the largest transport and logistics centers in Eurasia, and the main role in this matter is assigned to our country, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov noted.

Today, there is a regular ferry service between the seaports of Turkmenbashi and Baku, negotiations are underway to establish communication with the ports of Aktau and Kuruk in Kazakhstan. The issue of opening a logistics center in Astrakhan is being discussed with Russian partners, and the opening of the Trade House of Turkmenistan in Kazan is envisaged. A promising project of transport communication with access to the Russian Baltic ports and then to Europe along the Caspian Sea - Volga River route is being drawn up, the President said. In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was instructed, together with state bodies, to resolve organizational issues with Kazakh and Russian colleagues and begin the working stage of cooperation.

The continuation of work on the draft of a quadrilateral intergovernmental agreement on the creation and implementation of the Caspian Sea - Black Sea transport corridor, initiated by Turkmenistan together with Azerbaijan, Georgia and Romania, was also named among the topical directions.