Today, the opening ceremony of the 2nd Ashgabat Conference “Parliamentary diplomacy in the OSCE area: dialogue – a tool for establishing cooperation for a prosperous and peaceful future” was held in the capital’s Yyldyz Hotel. It was organized by the Mejlis of Turkmenistan jointly with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE PA).

The main goal of the event is to strengthen regional dialogue, promote and advance a comprehensive approach to ensuring security, lasting and sustainable peace for the well-being of future generations.

The conference was attended by the Chairman and deputies of the Mejlis of Turkmenistan, representatives of the capital’s universities, and the media.

The President of the OSCE PA Pia Kauma arrived in Ashgabat to participate in the forum; The OSCE PA Special Representative for Central Asia, as well as international experts, prominent public and political figures, parliamentarians from Austria, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Cyprus, Norway, Poland, Romania, France, Croatia, Sweden, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Ukraine.

The representative composition of the conference participants is another confirmation of the growing interest in dynamically developing Turkmenistan, the understanding by the international community of the significance and role of the legal status of neutrality as an important factor in safety, stability ensuring and global sustainable development.

The participants expressed their sincere gratitude to the Turkmen side for organizing the forum, as well as for the ongoing support of the events held by the OSCE PA.

As it was emphasized, such meetings and contacts that directly serve mutual understanding are more in demand than ever in the field of inter-parliamentary regional cooperation.

The speeches especially noted that Turkmenistan is the only country in the world whose legal status of permanent neutrality, supportive the centuries-old traditions of the Turkmen people, has been twice recognized by UN Resolutions. As an active member of the world community, our Homeland is not limited to putting forward significant initiatives aimed at developing mutually beneficial partnerships, but also takes successive steps to implement them in practice.

Today, the basic principles of our state – strengthening global peace and security, expanding friendly and fraternal relations with interested countries and partners, ensuring sustainable development on the planet – form the basis of the peaceful foreign policy pursued by independent Turkmenistan.

At the 1st session “Parliamentary diplomacy in the OSCE area: creating a solid foundation for sustainable international peace and security through dialogue and cooperation” it was emphasized that the constructive proposals put forward by our country for solving pressing issues on the global agenda, actively promoting diplomacy of trust and mutual respect have become a significant contribution to the common efforts to return international dialogue to a peaceful diplomatic channel. 

The speakers noted that they support the decisions of the United Nations General Assembly at the parliamentary level, including the work carried out in connection with the unanimous adoption, at the initiative of Turkmenistan, at the 63rd plenary meeting of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly of the Resolution “2025 – International Year of Peace and Trust”, co-authored by 86 states.

Multifaceted cooperation between the countries of the world, the active use of parliamentary diplomacy tools in strengthening peace, security and sustainable development became a key topic on the agenda of the current forum.

In the speeches, special attention was paid to the initiatives and proposals of Turkmenistan to improve the activities of parliamentary friendship groups, encourage the interaction between young parliamentarians, and increase the activity of women deputies, etc.

Tomorrow the conference will continue its work in thematic sessions: “Countering the negative impacts and consequences of climate change in order to ensure the well-being of future generations”, “Ensuring equal opportunities: the role of solidarity of youth and future generations in building a bright future”. A large cultural program has been prepared for foreign participants of the International Conference “Parliamentary Diplomacy in the OSCE Area: Dialogue – a Tool for Establishing Cooperation for a Prosperous and Peaceful Future,” including visits to museums, excursions around Ashgabat, and sightseeing in the Turkmen capital.