Today, the Russian Embassy in Turkmenistan hosted a press conference with Russian Ambassador Ivan Volynkin, to which representatives of Russian and Turkmen media were invited. Speaking with a summary of the results of the ending 2024 in Turkmen-Russian relations, the Ambassador said:

– Over the more than thirty-year history of diplomatic relations, special, strong ties have been formed between Russia and Turkmenistan, based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and good neighborliness. This is confirmed by the Declaration on Deepening Strategic Partnership signed by the leaders of our countries in 2022.

The most important factor that has a positive impact on the development of the entire range of interstate relations is the regular Russian-Turkmen dialogue at the highest level. In 2024, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Gurbangulyevich Berdimuhamedov visited Russia three times, namely in May to participate in the celebrations on the occasion of the 79th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, and twice in October - as part of an informal meeting of the Council of CIS Heads of State in Moscow and to participate in the outreach/BRICS Plus format on the sidelines of the XVI BRICS summit in Kazan.

As you know, in October, Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin flew to Ashgabat for the International Forum "The Interconnection of Times and Civilizations - the Basis of Peace and Development", dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the outstanding poet and thinker Magtymguly Fragi. In addition, another meeting of our leaders is planned for December 2024 as part of the traditional informal meeting of the heads of CIS states in St. Petersburg.

As Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin has repeatedly noted, the trusting dialogue between Russia and Turkmenistan was laid by National Leader of the Turkmen people, Chairman of the Khalk Maslakhaty Gurbanguly Myalikgulyevich Berdimuhamedov, who continues to make a huge contribution to the development of bilateral cooperation. During 2024, the Hero-Arkadag regularly communicated with senior officials of the Russian Federation, in May he visited Kazan, where the XV International Economic Forum "Russia-Islamic World: Kazanforum 2024" was held, and also kindly received the heads of Russian delegations in Ashgabat.

One of the most important events for our country in March 2024 was the election of the President of the Russian Federation. Through the Russian Foreign Ministry, 288 polling stations were opened abroad in 144 countries. More than 2,700 voters took part in the voting in five cities of Turkmenistan (Ashgabat, Turkmenbashi, Mary, Turkmenabat and Dashoguz).

As I have already emphasized, during 2024, a close dialogue was maintained with the Turkmen side aimed at solving urgent problems on the international agenda, including during meetings of interstate associations such as the Commonwealth of Independent States, on the sidelines of BRICS+, SCO+, as well as within the framework of international forums - "The Interconnection of Times and Civilizations - the Basis of Peace and Development", "Russia-Islamic World" and the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. In addition, diverse bilateral contacts and political consultations were carried out at the level of governments, legislative bodies and ministries of foreign affairs.

The promotion of the regional agenda was facilitated by the coordination of the efforts of our countries within the CIS, which Russia chaired in 2024. During this period, thanks to the hospitality of the Turkmen leadership, a whole series of events were successfully held in the country under the auspices of the Commonwealth. Thus, on May 24, a meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the CIS was held in Ashgabat with the participation of the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Mikhail Vladimirovich Mishustin.

During this meeting, a unanimous decision was made to declare Ashgabat the capital of new sports opportunities in the CIS, and a plan for joint work for 2025 was outlined, in which the chairmanship of the Commonwealth will pass to Tajikistan, and Russia and Turkmenistan will act as co-chairs.

The United Nations remained the key platform for interaction between Moscow and Ashgabat on international issues. Russia took part in the work of the Group of Friends of Neutrality and Sustainable Transport, created on the initiative of Turkmenistan, and became a co-author of the draft resolutions of the UN General Assembly proposed by Ashgabat, such as "On declaring 2025 the Year of Peace and Trust", "On a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia", "Zone of Peace, Trust and Cooperation in Central Asia", "On the UN Friendship Games".

Another area of ​​fruitful cooperation between Russia and Turkmenistan is the development of the Caspian region. In order to expand economic and humanitarian ties and combat the consequences of global climate change in the Caspian, we are conducting a confidential dialogue with the Turkmen side, which plays a key role in organizing and holding meetings of the Caspian "five" member countries.

Our countries attach great importance to inter-parliamentary cooperation. During 2024, delegations of Russian senators visited Turkmenistan twice to exchange experience in legislative activities and discuss joint projects.

Interregional ties play an important role in the development of friendly relations between Russia and Turkmenistan. Among Russian entities, the leaders in interaction with their Turkmen colleagues are the Republic of Tatarstan, St. Petersburg, Astrakhan and Chelyabinsk regions.

Humanitarian cooperation is actively developing. Today, more than 47 thousand students from Turkmenistan are studying at Russian universities. The most popular among Turkmen youth are educational institutions in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Astrakhan, Volgograd, Saratov and Rostov-on-Don. The draft intergovernmental agreement on the establishment and conditions of operation of the Russian-Turkmen University in Ashgabat is in the final stages of development.

This year, the quota of the Government of the Russian Federation for applicants from Turkmenistan to study at higher educational institutions of Russia at the expense of the federal budget was doubled. It amounted to 500 places, and this figure will be maintained during the admission campaign of the 2025/2026 academic year.

The joint Russian-Turkmen secondary comprehensive school named after A.S. Pushkin, which has been operating since 2002, is rightfully considered one of the most prestigious comprehensive schools in the country. The approval procedures necessary for the construction of a new school building for primary school students are in the final stage. We expect that its construction will begin next year.

This year, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Astrakhan and other cities hosted celebrations dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the Turkmen poet and thinker Magtymguly Fragi. On September 30, a solemn ceremony of opening the first bust of the poet in the Russian capital was held in the atrium of the All-Russian State Library for Foreign Literature named after M.I. Rudomino. Earlier, on May 17, a monument to the classic of Russian literature Fyodor Dostoevsky was opened in the new park complex "Magtymguly Fragi" in Ashgabat.

Overall, 2024 has been a fruitful year for joint projects in the humanitarian sphere. The Embassy held over 130 events attended by over 12,000 people.

Russia remains one of Turkmenistan's main trading partners. The Intergovernmental Russian-Turkmen Commission on Economic Cooperation is successfully operating. Thus, on October 30, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Alexey Overchuk visited Ashgabat to hold a meeting of its co-chairs. During the visit, he reported that in the first seven months of 2024, the volume of mutual trade between Russia and Turkmenistan increased by 58%.

Currently, special attention is being paid to interaction between our transport departments, which are working on the development of the eastern chord of the International North-South Transport Corridor. Thanks to joint efforts, the volume of export, import and transit traffic by rail has increased many times over, and modern technologies for managing freight flows are being introduced.

Currently, there are about 190 economic entities with Russian capital operating in Turkmenistan. Among them are representative offices and branches of such large Russian companies as PJSC Gazprom, PJSC Kamaz, JSC PO Vozrozhdenie, PJSC Tatneft, PJSC TMK and others.

We expect good statistical performance of the consular department by the end of 2024. As of December 1, over 109 thousand visas were issued, of which 30 and a half thousand were student visas and 58 thousand were tourist visas. These figures are 50% higher than the results of the same period in 2023, and the number of tourist visas issued increased by more than 60%.

For the convenience of citizens, we have systematically expanded the opportunities for making an appointment through the electronic queue portal. Thanks to the fine-tuning of this system and the coordinated work of the consular department team, it was possible to reduce the average waiting time for a consular appointment several times.

It can be stated that 2024 has become a very eventful year for Russian-Turkmen relations. I would like to thank Esteemed President of Turkmenistan Serdar Gurbangulyevich Berdimuhamedov and National Leader of the Turkmen people, Chairman of the Khalk Maslakhaty of Turkmenistan, Esteemed Gurbanguly Myalikgulyevich Berdimuhamedov for their invaluable contribution to the development of Russian-Turkmen friendship.

The fruitful work of the Embassy would not have been possible without the comprehensive support of our colleagues from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan. In this regard, I would like to express my gratitude to Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, esteemed Rashid Meredov.

I am confident that in the coming 2025, Russia and Turkmenistan will aattain new achievements in the name of the prosperity of our fraternal peoples.

ORIENT