EU Special Representative (EUSR) for Central Asia Ambassador Terhi Hakala visited Ashgabat on 10-12 December 2021 to participate in the International Forum of Peace and Trust held in Ashgabat on the occasion of the Day of Neutrality of Turkmenistan.
As part of her official visit, Ambassador Hakala conducted meetings with Yazdursun Gurbannazarova, Ombudsperson of Turkmenistan, Gulshat Mammedova, Chairman of the Mejlis of Turkmenistan and Rashid Meredov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.
During the meetings, participants confirmed Turkmenistan’s intention to further expand the cooperation between Turkmenistan and the European Union in political-diplomatic, trade-economic and cultural-humanitarian relations.
During the meeting with Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov, Turkmen side highlighted efficiency of the existing mechanisms of interaction, namely European Union-Turkmenistan Joint Committee, Inter-Parliamentary Dialogue, Human Rights Dialogue, consultative meetings between foreign policy agencies on various issues of cooperation, as well as cooperation in the European Union-Central Asia formats.
Speaking at the International Forum of Peace and Trust on 11 December 20211, Ambassador Hakala said: “Since the moment Turkmenistan established itself as an independent state, the EU has supported its sovereignty and independence and respected its foreign policy choices. As you know, neutrality is cherished also among the EU Member States, Austria and Ireland, in particular. For many countries, including my own Finland, neutrality is also part of nation-building and national identity. Today neutrality continues to be an important concept guiding foreign affairs, as we have been discussing today.”
Further, Ambassador Hakala brought an example of the European Union’s experience in building connections in Europe which has ensured peace in Europe and urged Central Asian countries to use this integration model as an inspiration when considering the regional peace and development.