The meeting brought together the heads of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry, other specialized agencies, the diplomatic missions and international organizations accredited in our country, as well as the media. The representatives of foreign media participated in the meeting through videoconferencing.

This is the fourth thematic briefing, dedicated to the measures taken to prevent the emergence and spread of coronavirus in our country. The effectiveness of the coordinated activities carried out in Turkmenistan is proved by the fact that there are no confirmed COVID-19 cases in Turkmenistan.

Head of the WHO Country Office, Paulina Karwowska expressed gratitude to the Government of Turkmenistan for the contribution to the common efforts to counteract the spread of a new type of coronavirus infection and the organization of the visit of the WHO Expert Mission to Turkmenistan early next month.

Moreover, WHO representative expressed satisfaction with the fact that following the recommendations of reputable international organizations, our country had made significant progress in promoting its health policy and continued to actively collaborate with the World Health Organization in the framework of universal immunization programmes and projects.

Speaking during the meeting, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Central Asia, the Head of the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA), Natalia Gherman, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, Head of Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia, Ms. Elena Panova, Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, Natalya Drozd highly evaluated the healthcare strategy, pursued by the President of Turkmenistan and constructive cooperation in the fight against the pandemic.

It has become a tradition to hold online meetings and conferences, in frames of which foreign experts exchange their experience in the fight against COVID-19.

The reports and comments presented in the media on the outcomes of previous meetings familiarize the world community with the work, carried out in our country to improve the national health care system, as well as new initiatives, put forward by the President of Turkmenistan with the aim to consolidate the efforts to counter this dangerous infectious disease.

Since the first days of the pandemic threat, neutral Turkmenistan has closely cooperated with the UN and its specialized structures. The Country Preparedness Plan was drafted jointly to counter acute infectious disease and take quick response measures.

One of the aspects of the adopted Plan is the integrated development of the national medicine, as well as broad interaction with regional partners and international structures, in particular, the World Health Organization.