On the 6^th of January 2021, a press-conference of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, Head of the Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia Natalia Gherman was held in Ashgabat.

The representatives of the local mass media and the journalists accredited in Turkmenistan participated to the event, including the foreign press that took part in the press-conference through videoconferencing. Among the participants, the representatives of the mass media of Azerbaijan, the Great Britain, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and other countries.

Opening the press-conference, N.Gherman congratulated everyone with the New Year and expressed gratitude for cooperation. She noted that in spite of the challenges faced by the humankind in the previous year, it was full of important events. “We marked the 25^th anniversary of permanent neutrality of Turkmenistan which has symbolically coincided with the historic 75^th jubilee of the United Nations,” noted Ms.Gherman.

She told to the participants about the important events and achievements of 2020 and highly appraised the level of cooperation between the countries of the Central Asia in political, trade-economic and cultural-humanitarian spheres.

During her speech, Ms.Gherman highlighted the Final Ashgabat Document adopted upon the outcomes of the International Conference “Policy of Neutrality and Its Importance in Ensuring Universal Peace, Security and Sustainable Development” which was held in Ashgabat on December 12 of last year in honor of the 25^th anniversary of permanent neutrality of Turkmenistan. As known, the given Document was published on the official languages of the UN and circulated as the documents of the 75^th session of the UN General Assembly and the Security Council.

“It is vital to note that the role of the neutrality policy in the development of peaceful, friendly and mutually beneficial relations among the countries of the world is comprehensively stated in the Final Document. It contributes to the strengthening of international peace and security on the regional and global levels,” said Ms.Gherman.

It was also underlined that the policy of neutrality urges to use the mechanisms of preventive diplomacy which is one of main functions of the UN while preventing the conflicts and in the processes of peace building.

Also, during her speech N.Gherman underlined the importance of the resolution of the UN General Assembly initiated by the President of Turkmenistan on declaring the year 2021 as the International Year of Peace and Trust. “For us, the International Year of Peace and Trust stands as an efficient method of mobilizing the international community for actions aimed at reinforcing peace and trust in the relations among the states, in particular on the basis of political dialogue, mutual understanding and cooperation for attaining sustainable peace, solidarity and harmony,” added N.Gherman.

On November 6, 2018, the heads of diplomatic missions of Germany, France, Italy, Great Britain, Romania, United States of America, OSCE Center, UNDP, UNICEF and the representatives of the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy visited penitentiary in Akhal region.  

The Esteemed President of Turkmenistan has stated in his speech at the 73^rd session of the UN General Assembly that necessary measures to ensure peace and prosperity for all citizens are implemented. It was also noted that Turkmenistan actively cooperates and takes all measures to cope with threats such as terrorism at the international level.  

As is known, one of the important directions of the state policy pursued by the President of Turkmenistan is further strengthening the legislative foundations of the state, the development of enforcement practices. In this context, the Government of Turkmenistan closely cooperates for several years with international organizations involved in  humanitarian field and takes measures aimed at strengthening country's legal capacity, as well as implements measures direсted towards improving penitentiary system.

The aim of this visit of the representatives of the diplomatic corps is to see material-technical base, conditions provided for inmates of the penitentiary and its work. 

Torre will also sit on Visa’s global Operating Committee in San Francisco

Currently serves as Visa President Sub-Saharan Africa and sits on U.S. President’s Council for Africa

Tbilisi – January 23, 2018 – Visa Inc. (NYSE:  V) has announced the appointment of Andrew Torre as Regional President for its Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA) region, based in Dubai. Torre, who previously led Visa’s Sub-Saharan Africa business, will now oversee all of Visa’s operations in more than 90 countries across CEMEA and report to Visa’s global president, Ryan McInerney. Torre will also sit on Visa’s global Operating Committee.

Torre is a Visa and payments industry veteran, with deep experience across the markets that comprise Visa’s CEMEA region. Having previously worked with the World Bank in Kiev, Moscow and CIS territories, Torre has been with Visa since 2002, holding global roles in product, strategy and pricing, as well as general manager roles in Russia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

“Andrew’s deep experience, which touches every part of our CEMEA region, has prepared him well for his new role. It provides him with a phenomenal understanding of both Visa’s global operations, as well as the markets that make up this fascinating and complex region. This will not only benefit Visa and our financial institution clients, but also add tremendous value to our merchant and government partners as we strive together to bring the benefits of connected, digital commerce to more people in the region” says Ryan McInerney, President, Visa Inc.

He adds; “We are doubly proud and excited that the world-class executive we needed to bring into this role came from our own in-market ranks. This is testament to the value we place on hiring the best people, and helping them develop into the best they can be.” 

Visa’s mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure digital payment network that enables individuals, businesses and economies to thrive.

“Nowhere is our mission more important to economic growth and prosperity than in the CEMEA region,” says Torre. “By 2020, we estimate that around 25 percent of the world’s population will live in this region, and those consumers will be young, technology savvy, and hungry for financial services that are more relevant and accessible to them. This opens up exciting opportunities for us to service those future consumers through innovative, mobile technologies that Visa is deploying, right now, in market, in anticipation of future consumer needs.

He continues, “What is even more exciting is that there is a huge amount of home-grown innovation happening in markets around this region, led by local developers. We are enabling this innovation through the deployment of our APIs (application programming interfaces) to help developers access the Visa network, and then backing it up by creating innovation spaces, like our Center in Dubai and forthcoming Studio in Moscow, for them to co-create with us. These are hugely exciting times for the industry and for Visa, and I am honored to have been chosen to lead our efforts at this important moment in Visa’s history.”

About Visa Inc.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world’s leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network - enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company’s relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere.  As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com, www.visasoutheasteurope.com, https://www.facebook.com/VisaGeorgiaGE, www.visanewscissee.com

The members of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities will meet from 18 to 20 October 2017, in Strasbourg, France, at their 33rd session, under this year’s heading of “Decentralised policies for the successful integration of migrants”. At this session, they will hold an exchange of views with young refugees and prominent political figures, who will talk about the specific problem of integrating child migrants.

In the context of its monitoring activities, the Congress will examine reports on the situation of local and regional democracy in Switzerland, Italy and Serbia. A recommendation on the observation of the local elections in Finland (9 April 2017) will be presented for adoption. Members will also be informed of the conclusions of the report on the elections to the Council of Elders in Yerevan, Armenia (14 May 2017) and they will discuss the outcome of the fact-finding mission conducted in Belgium. A round table on the situation in Mostar in Bosnia and Herzegovina is also scheduled.

The agenda includes three thematic debates: the first is debate on young people and open government in the fight against corruption, which includes the presentation of a report on transparent public procurement at local and regional level and an exchange of views on the youth perspective on the fight against corruption. The other two debates concern the role of European regional associations and organisations in co-operation and regional democracy in Europe and women’s participation in political life at regional level. Several reports will also be examined for adoption, in particular those on “Regional and minority languages in Europe today” and “A better future for Europe’s rural areas”.

The 33rd of Session the Congress will offer the opportunity to celebrate two anniversaries: the 10th anniversary of European Local Democracy Week and the 10th anniversary of the Congress’ Dosta! Prize for municipalities, which will be awarded, for the 6th time, to municipalities which have conducted ground-breaking projects to foster the integration of Roma.

The guest-speakers at the 33e Session include Milan CHOVANEC, Minister of the Interior of the Czech Republic, on behalf of the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers, and Thorbjorn JAGLAND, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

At this session, the Congress will also welcome some forty youth delegates, who will be invited to take part in all of the debates and meetings.

Newly-appointed ambassador of the Republic of Belarus to Georgia Mikhail Miatlikov presented copies of his credentials to Georgian Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze. Mikhail Miatlikov is the first ambassador of Belarus, who will be based in Tbilisi. The Georgian Foreign Minister congratulated the ambassador on his appointment and wished him success in his future endeavours. He expressed his satisfaction at the decision of Belarus to open an embassy in Georgia reiterating the hope that Mikhail Miatlikov will spare no efforts to further intensify relations between the two countries.
Discussions during the meeting focused on the issues relating to bilateral relations. Special attention was paid to the forthcoming session of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation due to be held in early September, as well as to the organization of a national exhibition of Belarus in Tbilisi. The sides exchanged their views on mutual cooperation within the international organisations. They also spoke about the ongoing processes in Georgia, the situation in the occupied territories and various issues of regional importance.