Azernews.Az

The Turkmen ambassador to Azerbaijan has said establishing a fruitful dialogue with the nearest neighbors, including Azerbaijan, linked to the Central Asian state by centuries of friendship historically based on spiritual and cultural traditions of the two nations, is one of the strategic directions of his country's foreign policy.

"Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan celebrated the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations on June 9. Dynamic development of bilateral equal partnership based on mutual respect and understanding demonstrates a common approach, the views and positions of our countries in various spheres of cooperation," Toyli Komekov told a press conference in Baku.

He noted that the relationship between the two nations has a long tradition dating back to the times of the Great Silk Road.

"Our countries, occupying an advantageous geographical location at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, are fruitfully cooperating, representing mutual interests in various fields: politics, economy, regional security, humanitarian and social services, as well as in the framework of international organizations," the diplomat said.

"Clearly, the active political contacts, especially at the highest level, are a solid platform for the active development of the Turkmen-Azerbaijani relations," Komekov said. "An example of this is the historic visits by the presidents of both countries. Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov paid an official visit to Azerbaijan in May 2008. In turn, President Ilham Aliyev was in Turkmenistan on an official visit in November 2008. The president of Turkmenistan visited Azerbaijan also in November 2010 in the framework of the third summit of Caspian states. The meetings held were important steps towards the strengthening and development of bilateral relations."

Komekov noted that traditional dialogue between the leaders of Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, as well as regular exchange of views on the pressing problems of global development that take place on the sidelines of international meetings and forums are important factors for bilateral cooperation and promote further strengthening of the partnership.

The diplomat added that Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan have a solid foundation for further strengthening of their economic partnership.

"The trade turnover between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan increases annually," he said. "This also testifies to the close economic cooperation. The sides actively cooperate in the spheres of environment and environmental protection."

He added that humanitarian cooperation is an important component of bilateral relations as well.

"The experience of diplomatic relations shows that we have chosen the right vector of our cooperation development," he said. "Its potential is very large and creative. We will continue to strive to maximally use all our opportunities."