Diplomats say: the city of Arkadag is a symbol of the grandiose plans of Turkmenistan
The new city of Arkadag as a national model of world urban planning practice - this topic was devoted to the conference, which was held on Thursday at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, bringing together a representative diplomatic community, including heads of foreign missions in Ashgabat and heads of diplomatic institutions of the country abroad, students.
At the opening ceremony of the forum, organized on the occasion of naming the new administrative center of the Akhal region after Arkadag, the guests were greeted by the rector of the IIR of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, Jumamyrat Gurbangeldiyev.
The first speaker was Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov. Then the floor was given to the ambassadors.
Russian Ambassador Alexander Blokhin, in particular, noted the skillful combination of innovative technologies, modern environmental standards and innovative solutions to social problems with concern for people. The diplomat noted that during the construction of a smart city at the foot of the Kopetdag mountain range, Russian developments were also used.
He stressed that the city is being built exclusively by Turkmen forces, Turkmen engineers and technical specialists are taking part in the project, including those who have received education in Russian universities, which currently train about 30 thousand Turkmen students, moreover, about 3 thousands of them receive education free of charge.
According to Blokhin, this is only a small touch in the panorama of Turkmen-Russian relations, which are developing on a transparent, strategic and long-term basis.
In turn, US Ambassador Matthew Klimow focused on a different setting of the topic - what makes a city not just a collection of buildings, but a home where a person lives? According to the ambassador, the city should not only inspire with its architecture, but also be “attractive to the heart”, embody the lofty aspirations of its residents. The city of Arkadag is a symbol of the grandiose plans of Turkmenistan, and the soul of the city lies in the ancient heritage of the country, its history, rich cultural traditions of the people, which are reflected in the appearance of the new administrative center of Akhal.
National values, spiritual heritage - the city of the future - Arkadag is built on this solid foundation, Klimow said, also stating that the United States is ready to invest in the development of this project, offer its high technologies and business ties in the field of renewable energy, trade, tourism, etc.
Aksoltan Atayeva, Permanent Representative of Turkmenistan to the UN, in her speech noted that the first stage of the construction of the city of Arkadag, completed in a short period of time, deserves the highest international assessment, emphasizing the contribution of our state to the practical achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and building environmentally friendly, socially adapted, "smart" urban systems.
On this topic, a dialogue is being held with such specialized UN agencies as the UN Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat), whose representatives pay special attention to the best practices of modern urbanization in our country and are ready for close cooperation in this direction, Atayeva said.
She added that during the current year, several presentations and introductory video conferences of colleagues from the UN with the administration of the new center of the Ahal region of the city of Arkadag were held, during which the high interest of UN agencies in practical acquaintance with this project, as well as the exchange of experience in the field of urban planning concepts aimed at reducing pollution, noise and climate risks, increasing the number of jobs, improving the health and well-being of the population was expressed.
The forum was also attended by Turkish Ambassador Togan Oral, Chinese Ambassador Qian Naicheng and Saudi Arabian Ambassador Said Osman Ahmed Suwayd, as well as Turkmen ambassadors to a number of countries.
ORIENT news
