Turkmenistan hosts international media forum

By Ali Cura

ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan (AA) - Turkmenistan hosted an international media forum Friday to mark 25 years of it Permanent Neutral Country status.

Authorities from Turkey’s Anadolu Agency and public broadcaster TRT, as well as global media authorities participated via video conference.

It was moderated by Dovletmyrat Seyitmammedov, Director of the Information and Analysis Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

A video presentation on Turkmenistan's neutrality policy over time was shown.

Sami Faltas, a professor at the Groningen University of the Netherlands, emphasized Turkmenistan successfully pursued a neutrality policy. “Turkmenistan successfully combined its neutrality with its foreign policy on being a good neighbor and having mutual respect,” said Faltas.

Viktor Shadurskiy, Dean of the Department of International Relations of Belarus State University, said: "The neutrality of Turkmenistan is of particular importance in the context of strengthening and expanding mutual and beneficial friendship relations between the countries of the world."

Berik Ahmetov, Rector of Kazakhstan Yessenov University, stressed his country supports Turkmenistan's neutrality policy and respects the development path that it chose independently.

Turkmenistan gained Permanent Neutral Country status with a decision by the UN General Assembly on Dec. 12, 1995. Neutrality is accepted as one of the most important principles of Turkmenistan, and its foreign policy is determined on that basis. For this reason, Turkmenistan does not participate in security and military alliances, does not allow foreign military bases to be established on its territory or to be used by foreign military forces, and avoids policies that it thinks would harm its neutral status.

* Writing by Erdogan Cagatay Zontur