On 21 January 2026, a meeting was held between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov and the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Qu Dongyu.
During the meeting, it was emphasized that Turkmenistan attaches great importance to cooperation with FAO. The Turkmen side reaffirmed its readiness to further strengthen and expand practical interaction with FAO, including through the implementation of joint programmes and projects.
The fruitful cooperation in 2025 was noted, as well as the significance of the opening of the Representation of FAO in Turkmenistan as an important factor in strengthening bilateral ties.
The sides highlighted the importance of holding joint regional conferences on food security in the context of climate change as an effective platform for dialogue and coordination of efforts among countries of the region.
Particular attention was paid to issues of sustainable development, environmental protection and climate change. In this regard, the initiatives of Turkmenistan to establish a Regional Centre to Combat Desertification for the countries of Central Asia, as well as a Regional Centre for Climate Change Technologies in Central Asia were underlined.
The sides also discussed the development of a new Country Programming Framework for cooperation between the Government of Turkmenistan and FAO for the period 2026 – 2030.Then, the Agreement between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations on the establishment of FAO Representation and the Provision of Technical Assistance was signed.