On 5 August 2025, a meeting took place in the Avaza National Tourism Zone on the sidelines of the third UN conference on landlocked developing countries between the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, and the Rais of the Republic of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov.
Rustam Minnikhanov sincerely thanked Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov for the attention given to the Republic of Tatarstan and expressed gratitude for participation in the International Economic Forum “KazanForum,” as well as for the support and special focus on the development of Tatarstan-Turkmenistan cooperation.
During the conversation, the parties briefly touched upon issues of trade-economic and cultural interaction between Tatarstan and Turkmenistan.
“We highly value the opportunity to expand cooperation with your country within the framework of friendly Russian-Turkmen relations. […] Leading Tatarstan companies have been successfully cooperating with Turkmenistan for many years,” emphasized the Rais of Tatarstan.
Minnikhanov highlighted significant potential for developing ties in areas such as oil exploration and production, gas transportation, automotive, aviation, and shipbuilding industries, energy, chemical product supplies, pharmaceuticals and medicine, the agro-industrial complex, culture, and education.
Relations in the humanitarian sphere are also successfully developing. Currently, 8,439 Turkmen students are pursuing higher education in Tatarstan’s universities. Plans are also in place to hold Days of Turkmenistan Culture in the republic.
In turn, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov inquired about the health of the first president and state counselor of the Republic of Tatarstan, Hero of Labor Mintimer Shaimiev, and asked to convey greetings and gratitude for all the congratulatory telegrams he receives from him. He also expressed hope that he would like to see Mintimer Shaimiev as an honored guest in Turkmenistan. The occasion for his visit could be the opening of the Central Mosque in Arkadag city in the coming years, Berdimuhamedov said.
At the conclusion of the meeting, the Rais of the Republic of Tatarstan expressed gratitude for the support of the 15,000 Tatars living in Turkmenistan and the attentive approach to their national and cultural needs. In turn, significant attention is also paid in Tatarstan to the national-cultural autonomy of the Turkmen community, which numbers around 3,000 people. ///nCa, 5 August 2025