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The Center for Strategic Studies of the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan took part in the China-Central Asia Development Knowledge Symposium. The meeting was held in Beijing, and Turkmen experts joined it via video link.

The event was attended by the leaders of the Chinese Center for International Development Knowledge - the organizer of the symposium, representatives of the relevant political, industrial, scientific circles of the PRC, think tanks, research institutes, government departments, embassies and international agencies of Central Asian countries. In particular, among the speakers were high-ranking representatives of the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Kyrgyzstan, the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Tajikistan, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, the Center for Economic Research and Reforms of Uzbekistan, the Academy of Public Administration under the President of Tajikistan, the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, CAREC Institute, etc.

The forum considered development processes and challenges in the countries of Central Asia, including in such areas as food security, industrial and investment cooperation, environmental protection, sustainable energy, infrastructure and communications, and the digital economy. In this context, the status and opportunities for expanding the partnership between China and Central Asia were discussed.

In his speech, Director of the Center for Strategic Studies of the IMO of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, Shiri Shiriyev, noted that at the beginning of the 2000s, many political platforms of various levels appeared and took shape in the world. Nevertheless, as time and the reality of life have shown, today the project "China - the countries of Central Asia" is one of the most famous, authoritative, multilateral formats that have great prospects for the development. And this is natural and logical, since the ties between the peoples of the Central Asian region and China have a long history.

As for the Turkmen-Chinese cooperation, it should be noted that the peaceful foreign policy successfully pursued under the leadership of our leaders, gaining momentum, contributes to the achievement of new frontiers in the system of international relations. This fact was also noted by the President of Turkmenistan during the Central Asia-China Summit. In particular, in his speech in Xi'an in May this year, he put forward initiatives that were met with great interest. The President then noted that "Taking into account the energy policy of Turkmenistan, based on the diversification of the supply of Turkmen energy resources to international markets, and if the parties are interested, we could continue to work on the implementation of new projects related to the supply of Turkmen natural gas in the Chinese direction."

Turkmenistan is ready to expand cooperation in the transport sector, the main factor of which is the existence of objective mutual interests of the countries of Central Asia and China. The project “Revival of the Great Silk Road” put forward by Turkmenistan is designed to give a powerful impetus to economic development in Eurasia, uniting the vast space from the Pacific to the Atlantic oceans on modern principles, forming interconnected production and technological cycles and industrial belts.

In the system of international relations, the importance of our region is growing due to the presence of large reserves, especially energy resources, favorable geopolitical and geo-economic advantages. At the end of the 20th century, the number of states interested in including the countries of Central Asia in the orbit of cooperation increased. In supporting the international initiatives of the Central Asian countries aimed at ensuring peace, security and sustainable development in the region, the political assistance of China, which is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, is very necessary. The states of Central Asia are cooperating in the field of consolidating efforts in the field of security and countering terrorism with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, established on the initiative of China.

It is no coincidence that energy is the key vector of the China+Central Asia partnership. As you know, China attaches particular importance to Central Asia in providing its rapidly developing economy with guaranteed energy sources. In this context, the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline project, built in a very short time - just over two years, is a great success for Turkmen and at the same time Chinese diplomacy.

In February last year, in Beijing, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Chairman of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping reached important agreements on the construction of the fourth line (line D) of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline.

Negotiations and meetings were held in Ashgabat, Beijing and online to discuss the second phase of the development of the super-giant Galkynysh gas field, as well as the design and construction of the fourth line of the Turkmenistan-China gas pipeline.

President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and President of China Xi Jinping recognize the huge potential and prospects for the development of the transport and communications sector, digital technologies, and the agro-industrial complex, which play an important role in the economic growth of all countries of the Central Asian region.

A team of experts from our countries is cooperating to address issues of active use of transport corridors that connect China through Central Asia with the southern part of Europe and the states of the Persian Gulf.

Last year, an important agreement was reached between the heads of Turkmenistan and China, and subsequently a Roadmap for the development of bilateral relations in the field of security was drawn up, as well as an agreement to develop cooperation in such areas as biological and information security.

On the economic and trade front, trade between the five Central Asian countries and China jumped from less than $500 million at the start of diplomatic relations to $50.1 billion in 2022, an increase of more than 100 times. In addition, China aims to increase trade with Central Asian countries to $70 billion by 2030.

Cooperation between China and Turkmenistan follows from the logic and nature of our relationship, which is based on a categorical rejection of any outside interference, respect for sovereignty, the development model chosen by each country, the political system and national values.

There is no doubt that our states, using their authority, well-established mechanisms of cooperation, will be able to make an important joint contribution to the establishment of a new agenda of peace and trust in international affairs, the reduction of tension, the de-escalation of conflicts, the transition to dialogue and negotiation methods for resolving disputes and contradictions based on the UN Charter.

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