Turkmenistan May Join Anti-Terrorism Parliamentary Conference
Turkmenistan is expected to join the Conference on Countering Terrorism and Strengthening Regional Cooperation, the regular meeting of which to be held in Istanbul this October. “Parliamentary newspaper” – publication of the Russian parliament – reports it.
The edition features interview with Chairman of the Russian State Duma’s International Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky, who said, at the moment, the Conference on Countering Terrorism and Strengthening Regional Cooperation has six countries as its members – Afghanistan, China, Iran, Pakistan, Russia and Turkey, and its format has all preconditions for further expansion.
“We expect that Turkmenistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and possibly Qatar, will join the work of the next Conference, which will be held in Istanbul on October,” said Slutsky.
According to him, the security system of a large Eurasia will be based on the states-members of the Conference on Countering Terrorism and Strengthening Regional Cooperation. The head of the Duma’s Committee underlined that these states will have to deal the main challenge of the century – the elimination of drug traffic in Afghanistan.
In addition, Leonid Slutsky said, “the 21st century is becoming the century of parliamentary diplomacy, and this tool helps us to solve complicates foreign-policy puzzles.”
Turkmenistan with its neutral status and as a neighbor of Afghanistan can play a key role “in solving the task of the century.” Ashgabat has repeatedly stressed at international arena that, for this, it would not be enough to prohibit the cultivation of opium poppy in Afghanistan, but to offer an alternative, decent way to earn money for people involved in this illegal business.
According to the Turkmen side, it is necessary to integrate Afghanistan into the global economy by implementing large infrastructure projects on the Afghan territory. At the initiative of Ashgabat, Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline, Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Tajikistan railway, as well as power transmission line and a fiber-optic communication line along Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan route are implemented currently.
