Oriented on making people closer

Permanent Representative of Turkmenistan to the UN Aksotan Atayeva met with students of the School of Young Diplomats of the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country. The meeting was also attended by the winners of the first season of the intellectual competition "Young Messengers of the World", that is, candidates for IMO students.

Speaking to those who in the near future will have to take responsibility for ensuring the development of the Fatherland, protecting its interests on the world stage, Aksoltan Atayeva paid special attention to new promising areas of training of young diplomats, the untapped potential in the work of teachers, staff, graduate students and students of the Higher School of Turkmen Diplomacy.

She noted the need to develop an international component in the work of youth associations of universities in the country, in which the diplomatic missions of Turkmenistan abroad can provide significant support.

"Such work is already underway," said Aksoltan Atayeva, "But it is you, the youth and the teaching staff who are tasked with the practical implementation of the previously reached interuniversity agreements, signed memorandums of cooperation with prestigious educational institutions outside our country."

Colleagues abroad are ready for a post-pandemic resumption of joint activities, and the diplomatic service of Turkmenistan will do everything possible to support the establishment of suspended ties, primarily with neighboring countries in the region, the permanent representative said.

In her opinion, the potential of cooperation within the framework of UN educational programs, including with the UN University, is not fully used at present. This institution (abbreviated UNU) is a global decentralized network of research centers and scientific programs with a main office in Tokyo. In total, the university has 15 research centers in 13 countries, and each of them has its own narrow specialization and cooperates with local universities.

Atayeva suggested organizing study visits to enable students to get acquainted with their peers at UNU, study international programs implemented within its framework, adopt a memorandum of cooperation with the UN University and begin real interaction.

She also noted that the year 2023, declared by the UN General Assembly the International Year of Dialogue as a Guarantee of Peace, opens up wide opportunities for the participation of young people and the diplomatic school of the country in promoting this initiative of Turkmenistan.

In the second quarter of next year, it is planned to hold an International Youth Forum "Dialogue as a guarantee of peace", and in this aspect, Aksoltan Atayeva urged to start discussing the format of the future congress today in order to accumulate proposals on the topics and other issues of the upcoming event.

Formulating the basic principles and precepts of Turkmen diplomacy, the Permanent Representative spoke in favor of raising the level of knowledge of young people about the United Nations, the work of its main institutions, the foundations of Turkmenistan's multilateral activities on this global platform.

She said that the Permanent Mission of Turkmenistan to the UN intends to organize a regular session of the Interregional Model of the UN, the first of which was held in October 2020.

"We plan to coincide this event with the United Nations Day on October 24 and hold it jointly with the office of the UN Permanent Coordinator in Turkmenistan and the UN Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia," Atayeva said.

In 2020, more than 120 participants took part in the work of the Interregional UN Model, in particular teachers and students of 15 higher educational institutions specializing in diplomacy and international relations, as well as active diplomats from 13 Asian and European countries.

The upcoming event will reproduce the work of several bodies of the UN system, in particular the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), etc.

"The need for qualified international experts, who are trained by the Turkmen School of Diplomacy, will continue to grow steadily, as before. The government hopes for you and puts a lot of effort into your preparation," Aksoltan Atayeva told future colleagues, after which she answered questions from the audience, who turned out to be very active and proactive after the ambassador's call-up speech.

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