The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov took part in the 19th meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Central Asian countries and the European Union on Monday, October 23. The meeting, held this year in Luxembourg, was attended for the first time by the foreign ministers of 27 EU member states. The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission and the European Commissioner for International Partnership also participated.

The diplomats discussed the state and prospects of regional cooperation, and also approved a joint roadmap for deepening ties between Central Asia and the EU, which noted the readiness of the parties to intensify dialogue in the fields of energy, interconnectedness, digitalization, extraction and processing of raw materials, security and strengthening of borders, resilience to the effects of climate change.

As a result of the meeting, a joint declaration was adopted by the Foreign Ministers of the Central Asian countries and the European Union.

The participants reaffirmed their commitment to work together for peace, security and sustainable development with full respect for international law, including the UN Charter. The EU highly appreciated the efforts of the Central Asian countries to create a new atmosphere of good neighborliness, mutual understanding and trust in the region and welcomed the strengthening of regional cooperation through consultative meetings of the leaders of Central Asian countries, including the recent Fifth Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia, held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, on September 14, 2023.

The joint declaration also welcomes the resolutions adopted by the UN General Assembly and initiated by Turkmenistan on proclaiming Central Asia a Zone of Peace, Trust and Cooperation, and the current year 2023 – the Year of Dialogue as a guarantee of Peace, which are aimed at developing a culture of peace, solidarity and dialogue.

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