President Serdar Berdimuhamedov took part in an informal meeting of the heads of state of the CIS

On December 26, 2023, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov paid a working visit to the Russian Federation, where he took part in the informal Summit of the Heads of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

The next Summit was also attended by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sadyr Japarov, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Before the summit, the heads of the CIS member countries, in accordance with the program for the stay of distinguished guests in St.Petersburg, visited the sights of the cultural capital of Russia. In particular, they got acquainted with the exhibitions of the State Museum “Pavlovsk”, the Tsarskoe Selo State Museum and Heritage Site in the city of Pushkin and the Peterhof State Museum-Reserve.

Opening the summit at the State Complex “The National Congress palace”, located in the Konstantinovsky Palace, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin expressed gratitude for the accepted invitation to visit St.Petersburg to participate in the Summit.

During the speech, a brief analysis of the results of the work carried out during the current year was given and the key areas of joint activities in the CIS format for the near future were identified.

Overall, 2023 was a fruitful and productive year for the Commonwealth. This is confirmed by the fact that all the foreseen events were successfully carried out, and the agreements reached are designed to promote the further expansion of cooperation between friendly countries in all areas, the implementation of new mutually beneficial economic, transport, logistics, cultural, humanitarian and other projects.

It should be noted that an important factor for successful activities in the Commonwealth space is that all member countries of the Organization are committed to the fundamental principles laid down in the foundation of partnership at the regional and global level. At the same time, over the past years, the CIS states have followed a course of cooperation, the reliable basis of which is goodwill, equality and trust of the parties.

Considering the CIS as a unique platform for building long-term partnerships, our country regularly puts forward specific proposals, the main goal of which is to develop effective forms of interaction that are in demand over time.

In this context, it should be recalled that during the regular meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the CIS, held on October 13 this year, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov put forward new constructive initiatives, the practical implementation of which is intended to give an effective impetus to long-term interstate relations in the CIS format, as well as to ensure security, stability and sustainable development not only in the Commonwealth, but also in the world.

At the same time, it is important to emphasize that the priority positions of Turkmenistan, voiced at the Summit in Bishkek, fully comply with the initiatives presented by President Serdar Berdimuhamedov at the UN General Assembly. In particular, this is a discussion of the possibilities of developing a Global Security Strategy under the auspices of the UN, as well as the establishment of the Institute of Neutrality and Security, further strengthening of multilateral partnership within the framework of the Group of Friends of Neutrality, created on the initiative of the Turkmen side within the walls of the UN, the creation under the auspices of the UN of a Meeting/Dialogue on security in Central Asia.

Along with this, during the summit meeting held in the fall of 2023, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov spoke in favor of consolidating further efforts to counter such serious challenges of the modern world as the terrorist threat, drug trafficking, human trafficking, the penetration of radical and extremist elements into the CIS space, according to issues related to cyber threats and other challenges.

The priority area of partnership within the Commonwealth is the economy. In this regard, it is important to mention that in 2019 in Ashgabat at the CIS Summit, the Declaration on Strategic Economic Cooperation of the Commonwealth member states was signed, developed at the initiative of the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Chairman of the Halk Maslahaty Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. This document formed the basis of the later adopted CIS Economic Development Strategy until 2030, which provides for close interaction in the areas of trade, industrial cooperation, transport, energy, investment and other sectors. These are precisely the sectors in which the Commonwealth states can compete worthily in foreign markets and offer potential partners favorable conditions for productive cooperation.

Noting the importance of promoting the economic interests of the CIS beyond its geographical boundaries, integrating neighboring countries and neighboring regions into joint projects, the Turkmen side has repeatedly taken initiatives to diversify energy, transport and communication components in the context of the development of large-scale infrastructure corridors North-South and East-West. The states of the Commonwealth, united by geography and age-old relations of friendship and brotherhood, in the modern era have objective advantages, the optimal use of which is in the interests of general well-being.

Partnership in the humanitarian sphere remains key in the CIS format. The cultural interconnection and spiritual closeness of the peoples of our countries, the centuries-old common history are the solid foundation on which integration processes within the Commonwealth are built.

The main topic on the agenda of the meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the CIS member states, held on December 18 of this year, was the expansion of contacts in this direction. Interaction in the fields of science and education, culture and art, youth policy, as well as healthcare and sports, in the mutual opinion of the heads of the Commonwealth countries, is an integral factor in bringing countries and peoples closer together and strengthening trusting relations between them.

Another significant vector of interaction on the CIS platform is through parliaments, actively using the experience of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth for these purposes. In this regard, it is important to note that Turkmenistan believes that, taking into account the increased role of parliamentary diplomacy in the modern world, such a format, uniting the heads of parliaments of the CIS states, is more than in demand today.

All these years, the CIS states have firmly defended the principles of equality and respect in interstate relations, advocated the establishment of a culture of peace and dialogue on the global agenda, strengthened stability and security on the planet, making a significant contribution to the implementation of the SDGs.

Recently, at the 49th plenary meeting of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, held on December 19 this year, the Resolutions presented by Turkmenistan - “The key role of reliable and stable energy connectivity in ensuring sustainable development” and “Strengthening connections between all modes of transport for Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals”, co-authored by Commonwealth partner countries.

The support provided to each other by the CIS member states in the international arena is evidence that the Commonwealth countries, which have enormous political and diplomatic potential, act from consolidated positions in the UN and other authoritative international and regional structures. At the same time, all member countries proceed from the need to return respect for the law, a culture of dialogue, trust and predictability in relations between states to world politics.

At the current summit, special emphasis was placed on the importance of giving the traditional partnership a qualitatively new content, based on the common goals and objectives. At the same time, the need to create effective mechanisms for systemic political consultations between the CIS member countries, taking into account the accumulated positive experience of joint work, was also noted.

During the exchange of views on priority areas of interaction, the heads of state expressed their firm confidence that the decisions made and agreements reached this year within the framework of various forums, events and meetings will contribute to the deepening of interstate relations in the CIS space.

In general, the current summit meeting in an informal format, at which issues of both the regional and international agenda were discussed, became another clear confirmation of the desire of the CIS member countries to continue to jointly build cooperation in the Commonwealth space in the spirit of strategic partnership, mutual benefit and taking into account the interests of all states.