The Consul of Turkmenistan in Astrakhan, Gadam Ilamanov, held a meeting with Vladimir Golovkov, Minister of International and Foreign Economic Relations of the Astrakhan Region (Russia). The primary focus of the negotiations included trade and economic ties, personnel training for the maritime industry, and transport connectivity.
Trade in Figures
According to the Ministry of External Relations of the Astrakhan Region, by the end of 2025, cargo turnover between the Astrakhan region and Turkmenistan increased by 38%. The supply of fish products to Turkmenistan grew fourfold, while exports of wheat flour increased more than three times.
In turn, Turkmenistan quadrupled its supply of finished Turkmen-made textile products to the region. According to the source, this positive trend resulted from last year’s business mission to the Astrakhan region by Turkmenistan’s largest state-owned textile enterprises.
Education: Training Personnel for Maritime Transport
Vladimir Golovkov and Gadam Ilamanov stressed that the Astrakhan Region and Turkmenistan are successfully cooperating in the humanitarian sphere. More than 3,600 Turkmen citizens are currently enrolled in the region’s educational institutions, a 34% increase compared to the previous academic year.
As an example of successful vocational guidance, Golovkov cited cooperation with the Maritime Secondary Vocational School in Turkmenbashi, whose students are interested in continuing their studies in Astrakhan at the Caspian Institute of Marine and River Transport (KIMRT) named after F.M. Apraksin.
This interest was confirmed during a recent videoconference between representatives of the two institutions. The Astrakhan-based institute is ready to provide high-quality educational services; a KIMRT diploma grants the right to work under any flag anywhere in the world.
Transport and Logistics
During the conversation, special attention was paid to intensifying joint work on the development of the “North–South” International Transport Corridor and continuing cooperation between the ports of the Astrakhan region and the Port of Turkmenbashi.
The parties also discussed cooperation between shipbuilding and ship repair enterprises, as well as inter-municipal interaction between the sister cities of Astrakhan and Turkmenbashi.
Additionally, the meeting touched upon the preparations for the upcoming session of the Astrakhan-Turkmen Joint Council on Entrepreneurship, scheduled for this year. /// nCa, 18 February 2026