Turkmenistan, due to its geographical location, occupies an important place in the global supply chain. The country intends to use this advantage and create economically profitable transport corridors that contribute to the development of international trade, attract large investments in transport infrastructure to increase transit attractiveness. This was stated by the Director General of the Agency for Transport and Communications under the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan Mammethan Chakyyev.

Speaking at the conference "International Transport and Transit Corridors: Interconnectedness and Development - 2023", he noted that the high interest of participants in this event shows the relevance of a dialogue of this format, which gives grounds to make these meetings a tradition.

Mammethan Chakyyev briefly presented the main aspects of the Program for the development of Transport Diplomacy of Turkmenistan for 2022-2025, which provides for strategically important measures for the comprehensive modernization of the material and technical base of all types of transport, the formation of modern profile infrastructure, further strengthening the country's position as a regional center of international transport and transit corridors.

Turkmenistan cooperates with other countries of the region to develop agreed mechanisms and infrastructure conditions for trade facilitation and e-commerce, strengthening economic ties and increasing trade with partners in the region.

In less than a year after the first forum "International Transport and Transit Corridors: Interconnectedness and development", significant events took place in the country. Among them is the Conference of Ministers of Transport of Landlocked Developing Countries, Turkmenistan's accession to the e-CMR Protocol, a request has been submitted to join the TRACECA and North-South international corridors. New automobile terminals in regional centers, railway bridges were also put into operation, many passenger cars, railway rolling stock were purchased, Airbus cargo planes were purchased, the geography of cargo and passenger routes of the national air carrier, covering Europe and Asia, expanded.

Today's challenges and changes in the global economy require from us not only modernization, but also innovative solutions. Therefore, the creation of new transport corridors and infrastructures based on digital technologies and environmentally friendly solutions can become a driver of economic growth in our country and the entire region. Said Chakyyev.

The transport conference, which opened on Wednesday, is attended by high-ranking representatives of the Government of Turkmenistan, heads of national and international transport companies, industrial zones, companies in the field of e-commerce, management of logistics organizations and major international financial institutions.

Speakers and moderators at the forum sessions are authoritative figures, well-known diplomats and experts from all over the world. They speak out on the most relevant topics related to the transport and logistics sector, its digitalization, noting the role of public-private partnership, science and education in the development of digital trade and logistics.

Many participants brought with them concrete investment proposals and promising partnership projects, which were discussed during separate bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the forum, which was distinguished by high business activity.

On May 4, 2023, at the Olympic Stadium, located in the capital's Olympic Village, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov met with President of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) Gianni Infantino.

Greeting the guest on the ancient and hospitable Turkmen land, the head of state first of all congratulated him on his re-election as the President of the International Federation of Football Associations and wished him new success in the development of football around the world.

President Serdar Berdimuhamedov stressed that he keeps the warmest memories of their meeting last December in Doha (State of Qatar), where one of the matches of the World Cup was held, at which an invitation to visit Turkmenistan was accepted.

Expressing gratitude for the invitation to visit Turkmenistan and the time allotted for a personal meeting, the head of FIFA sincerely thanked President Serdar Berdimuhamedov for the warm welcome and the opportunity to see the achievements of modern Turkmenistan with his own eyes.

Speaking about the main milestones in the development of domestic football, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov noted that the Football Federation of Turkmenistan was established in 1992. In the same year, games of the National Major League of Turkmenistan and tournaments for the Cup of Turkmenistan begin to be held. In 1994, the Football Federation of Turkmenistan became a member of FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation.

As noted, the Football Federation of Turkmenistan pays great attention to the development of children's football. As a result, since 2000, with the active participation of the Football Federation of Turkmenistan and UNICEF, together with FIFA, Grassroots football festivals have been held on a regular basis from March to November, in which football players of various ages take part.

Every year, the Football Federation of Turkmenistan, together with FIFA, holds international seminars in our country to improve the skills of football and mini-football referees, as a result of which referees who have successfully passed the tests receive the status of an international class referee.

During the meeting, the guest presented the head of Turkmenistan with a symbolic gift - a personalized T-shirt, an official ball and a FIFA pennant.

Thanking the Turkmen side for the willingness and desire to further intensify cooperation in the field of sports, the President of the International Federation of Football Associations highly appreciated the large-scale work carried out in the country to popularize the mass physical culture and health improvement movement and elite sports.

The Turkmen delegation took part in the 9th regional meeting of the National Committees on Trade Facilitation in Central Asia in Tashkent. This is reported by the website of the State Customs Service of Turkmenistan.

The central theme of the event, organized within the framework of the project of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), was the discussion of trade facilitation issues. In particular, initiatives to digitalize trade procedures and improve access to information for the private sector were considered.

In this regard, representatives of the World Trade Center familiarized the participants with the work of Trading Portal, which was recently established in Turkmenistan.

Representatives of the State Customs Service of Turkmenistan together with experts of the International Union of Road Transport and employees of the State Customs Committee under the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Uzbekistan also visited the customs post "Yallama" on the Uzbek-Kazakh border.

The Minister of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan Serdar Jorayev held a meeting with the Director of the Regional Center for the Development of the Potential of Countries for the Caucasus, Central Asia and Mongolia at the IMF, Norbert Funke, who arrived in Ashgabat at the head of the delegation of the Center.

The parties discussed new directions of further technical cooperation, which is designed to promote transformations in the field of finance in Turkmenistan and increase the potential of the national economy.

As reported, since 2021, representatives of the Ministry of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan have participated in more than two dozen trainings of the Center, which were devoted to various issues. The participation was both online and in the traditional format.

Funke expressed satisfaction with the development of the Center's cooperation with Turkmenistan and informed about the availability of opportunities for expanding the range of technical cooperation. In this regard, the participants of the meeting exchanged relevant proposals.

The head of the Center noted that in addition to regional consultations, there is an opportunity to organize bilateral contacts, within the framework of which specialists will provide technical support to Turkmen colleagues on public finance management, revenue management and administration.

In general, the parties noted with satisfaction the existence of significant potential for further expansion of cooperation.

The exhibition "International Transport and Transit Corridors: Interconnection and Development - 2023" (ITTC—2023) continues in Ashgabat, attended by representatives of more than 80 institutions and companies.

The solid composition of the participants of the show demonstrates the growing interest of the international community and large companies in cooperation with Turkmenistan in the transport sector.

The exhibition presents specialized transport institutions of Turkmenistan — agencies "Turkmendenizyollary", "Turkmenavtoulaglary", "Turkmendemiryollary", "Turkmenhovayollary", as well as dozens of Turkmen transport companies.

Well—known foreign air carriers, such as Fly Dubai and Turkish Airlines, railway companies — Russian Railways Holding, Kazakhstan Railways, as well as well-known manufacturers of equipment and components - Boeing, CRRC Ziyang Co., Ltd., Toyota, Michelin, Hankook, etc. showed interest in the forum.

In addition to the companies represented at the exhibition, hundreds of delegates of the ITTC-2023 conference attend the show, which will begin work at the CCI in the afternoon. One of the forum participants — Chairman of the Board of the Iranian transport and logistics company Behine Tarabar Azhur Mustafa Akdam shared his impressions of the exhibition with a representative of ORIENT:

— The exhibition is organized perfectly. We also have high hopes for the conference, which will be a great place to establish new contacts and effective communication. First of all, our company is interested in realizing our common transport and transit potential, including within the framework of the North—South corridor. There are great prospects in the development of railway transportation. We hope for further strengthening of cooperation," Akdam said.

On April 24 this year, the working visit of the Turkmen delegation to the United States of America ended.

As previously reported, another round of Turkmen-American political consultations was held in Washington. In addition, negotiations were held between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov and the US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.

During the visit, a meeting of the delegation of Turkmenistan with the head of the Turkmen-American Business Council, Eric Stewart, was also organized. Representatives of the US State Department and a number of American companies also took part in the meeting on behalf of the American side.

During the meeting, a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation in various areas between Turkmenistan and the United States was discussed. The importance of further building up trade and economic ties between the two countries was noted.

An exchange of views took place on promising projects in the gas and chemical industry, agriculture, in the field of renewable energy sources and hydrogen energy. The issues of further supplies of agricultural machinery for the needs of water and agriculture in Turkmenistan were also discussed.

During the meeting, the importance of solving the problem of reducing methane emissions into the atmosphere was noted and issues of cooperation in this direction were discussed.

On the same day, the meeting of the Turkmen delegation with US Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Geoffrey Pyatt took place in a friendly and constructive atmosphere.

The parties discussed the implementation of major projects involving leading American businesses. Attention was paid to the supply of Turkmen energy resources to world markets, in particular, in the European direction. At the same time, the prospects for the implementation of TAPI and TAP projects were considered.

Today, on April 14, 2023, a round table was held at the Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan on the topic “New formats of cooperation in the international information environment”.

The event was attended by representatives of international and national media, private media, relevant ministries and state agencies of Turkmenistan, press attaches of diplomatic missions accredited in Turkmenistan, experts and specialists in the field of information and communication policy, as well as teachers and students of the Faculty of International Journalism of the Institute of International Relations.

In frames of an extensive agenda, various aspects and directions of international information activities were discussed.

Opening the round table, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Myahri Byashimova noted the important role played by the outlet in the modern media space. In this context, she stressed that the current format of interaction is a platform for discussing the importance of the mass-media in establishing links in the international information field, aimed to bridge positions.

It was stated that the Government of Turkmenistan sets priority tasks for the domestic media sphere. Today, there is a need for more active promotion in the global digital space of up-to-date and reliable information about Turkmenistan, news reports on the transformations and achievements taking place in the country, studying the best world experience, the emergence of new formats and standards of broadcasting, print, and electronic press. Along with this, the expediency of further improvement and activation of the activities of private media in Turkmenistan was noted.

Particular attention was drawn to the initiatives of the President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov regarding regional cooperation in the media space, announced at the 4th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia.

In particular, was told about the illegal use of information technology, the implantation from the outside of ideas and attitudes that run counter to the historical traditions of the peoples of Central Asia, the basic values and centuries-old foundations of their life.

In this regard, a proposal of the head of the state to make joint efforts so that Central Asia remains a zone of stability and trust, not subject to risks for peace and development, was commented

In this context, the idea of holding a Central Asian media forum dedicated to security issues with the participation of state news agencies, print media, and electronic media has been put forward.

The head of the OSCE Center in Ashgabat, Ambassador John MacGregor, during his speech noted that media development issues are high on the agenda of the Organization. At the same time, this "round table" is a vivid example of constructive cooperation between the Government of Turkmenistan and the OSCE Center in Ashgabat in the field of media development. The initiative to hold the current forum in Ashgabat testifies to the growing role of Turkmenistan in promoting commitments within the OSCE and, thus, shows the desire to take an active position in the international media space.

The work of the “round table” continued in the framework of two sessions devoted to the issues of information sustainability in the 21st century and information policy in the context of the widespread development of social networks. During the sessions, with the active participation of OSCE international experts Marek Bekerman and Yakub Parusinski, an exchange of views took place on such topical issues of our time as the role of the state in creating a sustainable information space, aspects of media literacy in society, the development of information awareness among youth, issues of tackling misinformation and fake news, as well as the importance of education and continuous professional development of journalists in countering the above-mentioned challenges and problems in the media field.

Participants noted the important role of social networks and PR technologies in the modern digital information space, as well as issues of interaction between the state and media communities. In this context, aspects of the effective use of social networks as an important tool for communication and cultural exchange were discussed.

At the end of the sessions, interactive communication was held in the "question-answer" format, during which a thorough and constructive exchange of views took place on issues and topics on the agenda of the forum. Great interest was shown in the educational process and creative work of the future generation of journalists studying at the Institute of International Relations.

The participants of the "round table" noted the role and constructive activities of Turkmenistan in matters of close cooperation with all stakeholders in the region and beyond in the information and communication sphere.

The parties also viewed the exhibition of specialized foreign policy publications, deployed on the sidelines of the "round table".

The play «Fragi» was staged at the Batken Regional Music and Drama Theater named after Appaz Zhainakov of the Ministry of culture, information, sports and youth policy of the Kyrgyz Republic.

In recent days, the theater hosted the premiere of a performance about the life and work of the great Turkmen poet and thinker Magtymguly Fragi. The theatrical performance caused a special resonance among connoisseurs of the culture of the East and classical oriental poetry.

The production of the play was initiated by the Secretary General of the International Organization of Turkic Culture Sultanbay Raev in honor of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of Magtymguly. The stage director and artist of the play is Urmatkan Melyaeva.

This action is the first kind of theatrical performance abroad, dedicated and organized under the auspices of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the classic of Turkmen literature Magtymguly Fragi.

It is expected that the play «Fragi» will take part from Kyrgyzstan in the IV International Theater Festival, which will be held in Turkmenistan in November this year.

On April 5, 2023, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov received the Chairman of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of the Republic of Turkiye, Rifat Hisarciklioglu.

Noting the ongoing nature of the interstate dialogue, based on the inviolable bonds of friendship and brotherhood of the peoples of the two countries, the head of state stated that in recent years a rich and positive experience of mutually beneficial cooperation has been accumulated, which allows bringing Turkmen-Turkish relations to a qualitatively new level.

The participation of companies of the fraternal country in the development and modernization of important sectors of the national economy clearly evidences the effectiveness of the Turkmen-Turkish partnership, the President of Turkmenistan said, focusing on the indicators of trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.

In continuation of the meeting, an exchange of views took place on the prospects for further cooperation, which has a solid potential. The subject of detailed discussion was the development of mutual trade.

The comprehensive socio-economic programs implemented in Turkmenistan create favorable conditions for expanding fruitful cooperation, the President of Turkmenistan said, expressing the readiness of our country to further expand relations with the Republic of Turkiye in the fuel and energy and chemical complexes, textile and food industries, as well as in transport and communication and agricultural sectors, which are priority areas of the national economy.

At the end of the meeting, the President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov conveyed warm greetings and wishes of good health, prosperity and success to the President of the Republic of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Today, on April 6, 2023, the cultural event "Turkmen woman - a pattern example in public and state activities" was held in the building of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan.

The purpose of this representative forum is to widely highlight the role and place of women in the life of the Turkmen state and society, their efforts in the implementation of various areas of development both at the national and international levels. As is known, caring for women, raising their status in society, ensuring gender equality are the priorities of the political course of independent neutral Turkmenistan.

The event was attended by the Hero of Turkmenistan, Executive Secretary of the National Commission of Turkmenistan for UNESCO Chinar Rustamova, Hero of Turkmenistan, People's Writer of Turkmenistan, poetess Gozel Shagulyeva, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Myakhri Byashimova, Chairman of the Central Council of the Women's Union of Turkmenistan Akjemal Durdiyeva and other state, social activists of the country.

In the speeches of the participants of the event, special emphasis was placed on the ever-increasing role of women in the life of modern Turkmenistan, their great contribution to various aspects of state and social development.

The participants of the forum paid special attention to the policy of Turkmenistan towards women, the reliable guarantor of the provision and protection of whose rights are the Constitution and relevant acts of national legislation, as well as successfully implemented programs related to the education and health of women, their social and public status. Separately, the great importance of the place and role of women in the implementation of initiatives in the field of cultural, educational, environmental diplomacy, their huge contribution to the worthy education of the young generation of Turkmen citizens was emphasized.