Urgent issues of cooperation became the main topic of the meeting between the Minister of External Relations of the Astrakhan Region of the Russian Federation Vladimir Golovkov and the Consul of Turkmenistan in Astrakhan Gadam Ilamanov, the regional Ministry of External Relations reports.
Both sides acknowledged the significant progress made in trade, economic, and cultural exchanges.
“It is gratifying that the leadership of Turkmenistan is paying special attention to the development of cooperation with the Astrakhan region. The recent visit to Ashgabat by a delegation of our region headed by Vice-Governor – Chairman of the Government of the Astrakhan region Denis Afanasyev once again demonstrated this. Fruitful meetings and negotiations took place in the ministries and departments of Turkmenistan. We have a lot of joint work ahead of us,” Golovkov said.
The parties explored opportunities for collaboration, including:
• Establishing a Turkmen logistics center: Developing a logistics hub within Astrakhan’s special economic zone.
• Direct flight connectivity: Launching direct flights between Ashgabat, Astrakhan, and Kazan.
• Business Forum and Joint Council Meeting: Organizing the “New Horizons of Trade and Economic Cooperation” forum in 2025, which will include the fourth meeting of the Astrakhan-Turkmen Joint Council on business issues.
• Official visit: Facilitating a visit to Astrakhan by a delegation led by the governor of the Balkan province.
The parties also touched upon various areas of cooperation in the humanitarian sphere. They primarily relate to the interaction of educational institutions of the Astrakhan region and Turkmenistan, summing up and awarding participants of the solemn events that were held in the region as part of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the birth of the Turkmen poet and thinker Magtymguly Fragi.
At the end of the meeting, the Minister of External Relations of the region and the Consul of Turkmenistan agreed to develop a long-term cooperation plan, which, in particular, will include the participation of Turkmen delegations in international events held in the Astrakhan region in 2025.