Sometimes it happens that a man, who turned out to be involved in an historic, epoch-making event, fails to realize it right away. The importance of what happened becomes clear only after a while.

Nowadays one can say with certainty: having led the country in the crucial period of its history President Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov offered his compatriots the effective action plan that ensured the dynamic advancement of the country. He put forward the national idea: through peace, progress and achievements of world civilization, an integral part of which was the centuries-old history and culture of the Turkmen people, to the common welfare and prosperity

“As for me, I consider protection of human rights and freedoms, guarantees of the equality and execution of the laws by all citizens of the country, establishment of a highly developed society my ultimate goal,” the Turkmen leader said addressing the cultural workers and artists, the representative of the pubic organisations, members of the Galkynysh National Movement, the largest artistic groups and mass media workers last week.

Noting that the Turkmen society needed the absolutely new ideology based on the realties and demands of the new time, which should be founded on the principle “the state for the people” the Turkmen leader emphasized that only the only the strong democratic state striving for achieving civil concord was enable to serve the people, to defend their interests and rights.

These words are the key to understanding of those changes taking place in Turkmenistan nowadays.

“The state for the people” – what does it mean? First of all, it is the strong state that maintains the friendly, equal, respectful and mutually advantageous relations with the countries and nations worldwide guaranteeing the political stability in and outside the country, creates the favorable conditions for development of national economy and a society and adheres to the principles of humanism, social justice and high spirituality. The strong state is the strong power plus the effective laws enabling to reliably protect rights and freedoms of citizens, to ensure their security and opportunities for integrated development, self-expression and realization of creative potential.

Sustainable and steady development of national economy, culture, social sphere finally conditions the standards of wellbeing of the people and each citizen in particular. Like economy education, science, technologies, medicine are unable to develop in isolation of the scientific and technological advance culture should absorb the values common to all mankind preserving its national roots, national identity.

To change the people’s consciousness, attitude towards such concepts as responsibility, the duty to the Motherland and society, to teach them to think in a new way, to put the innovative ideas into practice were the vital tasks for today , which the President of Turkmenistan set to Turkmen cultural workers, public and governmental organisations, mass media called upon to propagate and popularize Turkmenistan’s new national foreign and domestic policies on improvement of the welfare of the people, to elucidate the essence of the new programmes aimed at bringing the country up to the level of the highly developed countries.

The mass media should reflect the stability reigning in all spheres of the political and social life and the activity of the public authorities and organs of government as well, our ideological openness, the attractiveness of national economy for foreign investors with due regard to the recent initiatives on the reforms of the state system and creation of the common legal environment, the Turkmen leader said.

The questions of paramount importance to Turkmen culture were raised during the sincere, constructive and serious conversation. The Turkmen leader gave the clear answers supported by the concrete actions. Besides‘re-equipment’ of the television and printed mass media Turkmen cinematography, operatic and circus arts, museum and library sciences were offered a powerful incentive to develop.

A cardinally important factor of successful fulfillment of the tasks in the cultural sphere as well as implementation of the social and economic development programmes in the country – people, specialists, professionals. To teach, to educate the others Turkmen journalists and experts in the cultural and ideological spheres must have profound knowledge, great erudition, be aware of latest worldwide trends in all spheres, they must start to think and work in a new way, be exacting of themselves and meet the modern demands. The President called for it suggesting organizing the groups of well-experienced political and economic journalists at the national television, introducing a new discipline on development of modern Turkmen society at the national higher educational establishments speaking about the necessity of training specialists, search for young talents.

To create the favouable conditions for comprehensive realization of the intellectual potential of the Turkmen nation – that is the President’s efforts dictated by the great personal responsibility for the fate of the country, the present and future generations of the Turkmen people, who are to live in the century of the rapid scientific and technological advance, the great achievements of human thought, are aimed at. Another important step towards success of the educational reforms initiated to reserve the humanitarian and manpower resources for the economic, social and cultural growth of the country was made last week.

It concerns the medical science and national healthcare system. In accordance with the special Resolution of President Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov the centres for postgraduate studies and doctoral research will be opened at the Turkmen State Medical Institute and the leading national research and clinic centres providing medical practitioners from all over the country with the opportunities to enlarge their knowledge and improve their professional skills. The doctoral institutions and postgraduate schools and competitive financing of the research activity in Turkmenistan will promote developing of national medical science.

The agenda of the recent sitting of the Cabinet of Ministers focused on integrated development of national economy in the year 2008. The new projects aimed at creating the modern health resort infrastructure in Turkmenistan were presented at the sitting. Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov said that Turkmenistan had the profound, unique natural potential enabling to implement the grandiose projects such as creation of the Avaza national tourism zone on the Caspian Sea coast - world-class seaside resort. There are the world-renowned health resorts in Turkmenistan that will be given a new life: the health centres in Archman and Bayramali will be reconstructed, a new sanitaria and health complex will be built in Mollakara.

The Turkmen leader attaches paramount importance to modern agro-industrial infrastructure development. In accordance with the Resolution of the Presdient of Turkmenistan the grain elevators are to be constructed in the Ahal, the Dashoguz and the Mary Velayat. The project on construction of a production complex in Ruhabat is underway. The Turkmen leader said that the agro-industrial complexes including the grain elevator, flour milling plant, shopping centre and other facilities would be constructed in all the regions.

Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedov’s foreign policy strategy, the core of which is mutually advantageous co-operation, adherence to the chosen once for all principles and the responsibility for the commitments undertaken, enjoys the firm support of the political and business circles worldwide opening a broad road for the successful and solid fruitful contacts in various fields. Turkmenistan-European Union dialogue considerably intensified in recent years and nowadays brought up to a higher level as well as the vast opportunities of expanding bilateral partnership provided in this regard vividly illustrates that. That was the meeting of the Turkmen leader with the EU delegation led by Director of the Division for Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the MFA of the Republic of Slovenia Darya Bavdaz Kuret focused on.

Moreover, the last week testified to Turkmenistan’s readiness to seek the mutually acceptable solutions to the Caspian Sea-related problems. The first meeting of the intergovernmental Turkmen-Azerbaijani commission for economic co-operation was held in Ashgabat. During the meeting held in the atmosphere of mutual understanding and trust the partners specified the priority trends of Turkmen-Azerbaijani co-operation, discussed the prospects and opportunities of intensifying collaboration in a broad range of fields including oil and gas industry, transport and communication, environmental protection and humanitarian sphere. The participants noted with satisfaction that the interstate relations had been intensified and promoted by the Turkmen and Azerbaijani leaders’ personal contacts and the mutual readiness to maintain the constructive, friendly dialogue for the benefit of both nations.

Thus, being aware of the importance of harmonizing national development with the historic steps of the time Turkmenistan defines and consistently implements the strategy evolving from the real capabilities and aimed at fulfilling the strategic tasks of the new historical epoch.