On February 22, 2008 President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov participated in the unofficial CIS Summit in Moscow and addressed the leaders of the CIS states.

Declaring comprehensive development of bilateral and multilateral co-operation to be a priority of Turkmenistan’s foreign policy strategy Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov characterised the CIS as an important and useful forum acting as an advisory body and providing an opportunity to discuss the issues of current importance related to development of the countries and regions in the territory of the CIS.

It was that had conditioned the choice and determined Turkmenistan’s position to join the CIS as associated member that not in the least belittled for the country the significance of the Commonwealth as an effective intergovernmental mechanism, the Turkmen leader said. Moreover, the President continued, we had an opportunity meeting our national interests to maintain fruitful co-operation with all, without exception, the CIS member states, to the regional principle, first of all.

Over the last year Turkmenistan considerably expanded and intensified those relations in the strategic trends of co-operation that was proved by promotion of partnership in the energy sector. To date, taking account of Turkmenistan’s proposals, the specific agreements on collaboration of some CIS member states in the Caspian gas pipeline project and the project aimed at expanding the capacities of the existing Central Asia-Centre gas-main pipeline have been reached

The President of Turkmenistan defined the sphere of transport as a key trend of collaboration in the CIS. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov emphasized that the Dushanbe Summit had determined the sphere of transport as a priority of co-operation in 2008. That conformed to Turkmenistan’s long-term action plans. Establishing modern transport infrastructure was an important vector of the national social and economic development. Some decisive steps to promote implementing the agreements reached between the CIS states had been made on that way, the Turkmen leader said.

Thus, on the initiative of Turkmenistan the agreement was signed and the project on construction of the transnational trunk railway to connect the railway networks of Russian, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan with on outlet to Iran was launched in the autumn of 2007. The project was called to build the shortest, and so the most efficient, route to deliver cargo from Europe to the Persian Gulf as well. The Turkmen leader said that he believed that implementation of the project would promote increasing the efficiency of the railway networks of the CIS states.

The President mentioned development of the existing sea routes and creation of the new shipping lines to the Caspian seaports in the CIS states as the issues of current importance. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov stated that Turkmenistan made the significant efforts in that field. For example, the work on reconstruction and expansion of the existing capacitates of the Turkmenbashi seaport on the Caspian Sea was carried on. We suggested, the Turkmen leader said, employing in full the capacities of transporting cargo along the shipping lines from the Turkmenbashi seaport to Astrakhan, Makhachkala, Baku, Aktau.

Also, the President said, we considered intensification of air freight activity and conveyance of passengers to be of particular importance. In that field Turkmenistan had the experience of positive co-operation and adequate capacities. Last year the air communication Ashgabat-Almaty, Ashgabat-Minsk was opened and the air route Ashgabat-Kiev would be opened a few days later. The opportunities of opening the air communication between Turkmenistan and other CIS countries were negotiated.

Along with further improvement of the mechanisms of bilateral co-operation, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov continued, consistent development and improvement of the work of the CIS intergovernmental transport structures should be prioritized.

An important element of our collaboration, the Turkmen leader said, was the humanitarian sphere. Declaring that Turkmenistan supported the ideas and initiatives aimed at strengthening the humanitarian co-operation among the CIS states, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov called for elaborating the particular projects and programmes aimed at furthering the educational, scientific, information and cultural exchange among the CIS countries.

Touching upon the issues of improvement of the work of the CIS, the Turkmen leader said that the most acceptable and constructive approaches to collaboration meeting the national as well as common interests of the participating countries could include elaboration of the framework documents. The President explained that in this case the interested CIS member states would have an opportunity to adapt those documents on the basis of the mutual interests.

Such an approach, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov emphasized, enabled to make the intergovernmental collaboration within the framework of the CIS more fruitful when tackling the particular issues of co-operation.

Upon concluding the Turkmen leader cordially thanked RF President Vladimir Putin for the invitation to participate in the Moscow Summit.