Azernews.Az

Turkmenistan and Romania have signed a package of intergovernmental agreements in conclusion of talks between Presidents Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and Traian Basescu in Ashgabat, an official Turkmen source said.

The package includes an action plan between the two countries' foreign ministries for 2013-2014, a memorandum of understanding between the Turkmen Finance Ministry and Romanian National Office for Prevention and Control of Money Laundering on cooperation in exchange of financial information aimed at fighting money laundering and supporting counter-terrorism efforts, as well as a memorandum on cooperation in the transport sector.

Construction, communications, high technologies, investments, and the banking sector were noted as perspective areas of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Romania, which mark 20-year anniversary of their diplomatic relations this year.

Turkmen-Romanian negotiations took place as part of Turkmenistan's consistent broadening of multilateral cooperation with the European Union.

Romania became a member of the EU in 2007.

Brussels is looking for alternative energy sources in the resource-rich Caspian region, where Turkmenistan is one of the key energy market players.

Potential buyers of Turkmen gas are Romanian Transgaz, Austrian OMV, Hungarian MOL, Turkish Botas, Bulgarian Bulgargaz, and Germany's RWE, holding 16.67 percent stakes in the consortium of Nabucco pipeline project, which is to export gas from Azerbaijan's giant offshore Shah Deniz field to energy-thirsty European markets.

The EU-backed project covers the territories of Azerbaijan, Turkey, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Austria. Its implementation terms as well as costs are reconsidered from time to time. The pipeline's maximum capacity is 31 billion cubic meters of gas.